Home > Articles > Photo Writing Prompts: Roadside Scenery

"Notice the roadside scenery. It grows along just like you do. Look and learn from it." — Chris Dunmire

Photo from the 'Nature Sentiments' Printable Card Collection »

Roadside Scenery

Helps us see where we are, what we are.

By Chris Dunmire, CurrentLiving.com

We are told that we are travelers in life, that we are on a 'road to discovery' or 'journeying on a path' to a destination mostly unknown. One of the thrills of our adventure-seeking lives is that we just don't know where we'll find ourselves lodging some nights.

It's been drilled into us that in order to get to our "destination", we have to stay the course and not give way to distraction. This conjures up the image in my mind of a horse with blinders on, so that he may not be distracted by a single songbird or tempted by a juicy apple dangling from a nearby branch. A wise horse would not choose to accessorize his bridle with these man-made flaps that keeps him from seeing the wonders of the world.

Are we so task-driven and production-oriented that standard protocol goes out of its way to ignore the scenery and deprive us of the many 'gifts along the way' in order to save a few minutes or a fist full of dollars? I think each time that we do, we actually lose what we've saved in time or money in exchange for little pieces of our soul. If you've seen rush-hour pedestrians in a big city, it's not hard to imagine them a stampede of horses running along with blinders on in the form of cell phones and crafted avoidance of any social contact with the humans they run along with shoulder-to-shoulder in the race of humankind. What awaits us at the finish line?

"Focus!" We're told.

"Stay the course!" We're reminded.

"Don't make eye contact!"

"Keep your eyes ahead!"

"Don't be distracted! Time is money! And money is everything!"

Is it? What happens when money is worthless? What happens when we need people, the strangers that we work so hard to avoid, to come to our aid, to care about us?

And what about the roadside scenery? Is it really a sacrifice to occasionally pause from our course to notice what's going on around us, besides us, with the people near us? How long has it been since you've connected with a another human with kindness and care? A friendly smile, a "hello", a nod of acceptance that we are all in this together no matter how much some of us try to pretend otherwise by stonewalling or plugging into some form of electronic diversion that allows the mind to wander and the soul to starve?

Picturing the Big Picture

The photo at the top of this essay was taken only a few miles from my home on a rural stretch of road in the Midwest where you can still find a few dilapidated red barns dotting the landscape. I purposely cropped the photo so you can see the half road/half roadside and notice that they are not separate, but rather joined, connected, and partners running side-by-side as long as they are together.

If you've ever driven down a long stretch of rural road, you'll know that the landscape can go on for days without anything noteworthy happening. No stop lights. No strip malls. No drive-through's, grocery stores, Wal*Marts, or anything else. No, it's just you, the road, and the land. You are forced to acknowledge your roots — the ones that were there long before Edison invented the light bulb and Google plugged us all into the virtual collective consciousness.

Yes, as long as you are traveling on a rural highway, the roadside scenery follows you. You can't get away from it. It's not a minor byproduct of your journey, it's part of your journey. And if you've followed a particular stretch for years you'll know that trees grow taller. Rivers etch deeper. Hills roll up and down. Sometimes animals appear in a flash of delight. And occasionally, you'll feel like you're the only one in the world. If you pay extra attention, you'll realize that you too, are part of the scenery.

Act on Your Inspiration — Photo Writing Prompts:

• What does the 'roadside scenery' (literal or symbolic) in your current travels tell you about your life?

• Are you wearing blinders?

• Is your soul starving? What can you do to feed it? •

© 2007 Chris Dunmire, CurrentLiving.com. All rights reserved. (12/25/07) Please do not duplicate this article elsewhere without my permission.

About the Author
Chris Dunmire is creatively engaged in life as an artist, writer, humorist, and publisher of the popular Creativity Portal Web site. She's trained as a creativity coach with Eric Maisel, Ph.D., and develops projects and playbooks to encourage creative thinking, artistic expression, and play in people of all ages. Learn more about Chris's books at CreativeSlush.com.