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I have a hobby. I love to take photographs of flowers. There is
something about flowers that intrigue me. Part of my morning routine
at our Nazareth Formation House in Batangas is to walk around the
ranch and take pictures of the many varieties of flowers that dot
the landscape.
We have five hectares and almost daily I get
surprised when I stumble across a flower that was not there the day
before. Flowers have their time. They come and go according to the
seasons. Some are year around, but the prettiest are those that
bloom the shortest tune. Some are in full bloom only one day and
then they are gone till the following year. If you are not alert
enough, you will miss them and have to wait another 12 months to get
the chance to see them again.
It is truly amazing how diverse are the
followers. They reflect the genius of the Creator. They come in all
sizes, shapes and colors. Some are so delicate that they will fall
apart if you touch them. Others are very tough and can survive even
the strongest winds. There are flowers that smell so good that they
make their presence felt even at a distance. Others want you to get
up close to enjoy their scent. Some pop up seemingly out of nowhere
and when you least expect them.
I especially like to photograph the tiniest
flowers. Those you have to look carefully if you are to find them.
Many of these little ones are wild. People pass by and never notice
them. Like gems in the rough they come and they go unnoticed.
Some are so tiny that, believe it or not you can
put a dozen of them on your fingernail. And tiny does not mean
simple. Some of the tiniest are the most intricate.
I like to take close ups of flowers because I
believe you can only see the soul of a flower if you look deeply
into its innermost self. Therein lies its greatest beauty. Like
people, unless you get to know the soul, you cannot know and
appreciate a flower.
I have my favorites too. They line my veranda
and every morning I check them out and take pictures if them even if
I have done so many times before. When you love someone, you are not
satisfied with one photo. You take as many as you can, as often as
you can.
The same is true of flowers. You keep looking to
take the perfect shot, but somehow you never succeed in doing so.
Perhaps it is impossible to reflect the total beauty of a flower (or
a person) in one photograph. Maybe that is why we take so many
pictures of the beloved, hoping to capture every feature as
perfectly as possible.
I have more than 30 thousand pictures of
flowers, but it does not seem to be enough. There always is
something new, a new angle, a slightest variation in color, a
different setting, that keeps me going back every day.
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If you have problems about drugs, alcohol and
behavior/attitude call my office at 8206107 or 8251771 or e-mail me
at gvcbuenca@vasia.com or write me at P.O. Box 2099 MCPO, Makati
City.
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