Green is such a restful colour. With the sunlight passing through the leaf membranes, the greens glow; all the tiny veins form patterns linking to the Y-shape of the major stems.

It looks rather like a picture I saw of the rivers of the Amazon Basin viewed from a high satellite pass. The similarity is not just the appearance: the plant uses a “web” of veins and arteries to pass water and nutrients TO the leaf, and thus aid the chlorophyll “factory” working in the leaf bio-chemistry. The chlorophyll is what produces the green colouration. When the growing season ends, the loss of chlorophyll and water turns the leaves brown (until they shrivel or drop).

Just look at the shapes in the composition: allow your eye to wander and explore. What comes to mind? The leaf doesn’t “tell a story” it just exists… is that enough? Or is this photo a waste of space?

Being itself and being displayed can suggest value and beauty. As for meaning… aren’t some pictures valid just because they are pretty?

Let your eye linger on the photo. Does the “simple complexity” cause you to think of the wonder of life, of beauty, of the One who caused Life to be?

To look at a picture or a living scene is one way of tuning in to God’s reality and Being. Some call this practice “Visio Divina” or Divine Seeing; it is a heart-centred practice that invites the viewer to perceive God’s presence through what they see, parallel to how Lectio Divina uses scripture for meditation and prayer.

The practice emphasizes slowing down, gazing with love, and allowing the image to speak to the heart, fostering a direct encounter with the divine. It goes back to St Benedict (c500AD) or earlier: using icons, stained glass, and other forms of art.

Historically, it has been a way to make the invisible grace of God visible through art and creation. Willing to try it? Pick a picture…

(Definition provided by contemplative.org which is worth checking for more insight.)

For the curious- the leaf is a Giant Rhubarb Plant, photographed at Dunster Castle.