Nature's wisdom

Ever felt so stressed out by things not going right? So that you feel like just giving up? Last week Philippa and I nearly hit rock bottom when my laptop stopped working in the middle of building a presentation I am due to give at a Tokyo university.  After trying everything possible to fix things we decided to end it all - but not literally. 

We packed camping and photography gear into the car and left the problem behind. After one of the most beautiful drives in the world through the mountains of the Southern Alps with clear skies, we arrived at the magnificent Haast beach on the West Coast: breakers as far as we could see, a backdrop of snowy peaks and a beach scattered with giant driftwood. We were here for a reality check.

Nature's Wisdom

A large interestingly shaped log caught my eye lying on the sand. Between us we heaved it upright and with small cuts here and there created a sculptural figure standing near a dune lake. The finishing touch - a driftwood staff.

Against the sunset the log became a sculpture evoking the wisdom we were looking for.