The purple coneflower is a symbol of nature’s resilience! The flower's strength teaches us about endurance and surviving challenges. As it’s associated with the herb echinacea it represents wellness and recovery with its anti-inflammatory properties. It helps us to understand negative energy or illness and uses its strength to focus on the good and to not only survive, but to survive well.
What a better plant and flower to pay attention to! Flower photography has been something I’ve completely enjoyed every summer. Getting the perfect angle to make a flower stand out a little better. I grow both purple and white coneflowers in my flower garden. They are the highlight of the suns rays and flourish. They also get many visitors including bees and butterflies of all kinds. When the flowers turn to seeds later at the end of summer you will also find Goldfinches busy grabbing the seeds. When you stop to notice you’ll discover a very busy bug land all summer!
It helps me to ground myself to notice what nature holds for us. I’m constantly trying to find the balance between living the life I want and not pushing my MS into a flurry. Being steady and even keel are the keys to winning at life when living with MS. MS can rear itself easily if I’m not careful. And the ramifications are big if I push myself too much. Most of my relapses I’ve learned over the years happen after I pushed myself too hard. I crave to feel normal. But sometimes normal is too much and I don’t want to awaken the sleeping giant within me. So I need to be aware. It can cause anxiety and concern when a MS symptom arises, did I go too far? What do I need to do to help myself and settle the giant back down? It causes me to stop and assess where I’m at and what I’m feeling. I take action by resting and eating right and staying hydrated and then more resting. I do my photo editing on my computer when I’m in rest mode. So my life’s schedule works very well being a photographer between capturing the photo and then resting and editing.
For moments of chasing the butterfly or bee with my camera in the garden, I can lose myself in something that’s completely positive and gives me a photo result that I’m hopeful I can share and make people happy. At the time I took the photo, I was completely content and being in the moment.
When you look at my book, that was the inspiration I had. I’ve been taking a photo a day since covid began in March 2020 and posting them on Instagram. And every photo captured has been a joy to get because it takes me to just that present time. What a gift! I forget about all the issues that plague my body and go after the photo. So the chase is important and just like the purple or white coneflower with the bees and the butterflies, it represents strength, beauty and resilience! And that’s where I find joy in living and finding the good! I hope you do, too!
To see my book and purchase a copy you can head to my main webpage! I’d love to send you a copy showcasing my work! Let me know what you think, too!