Iceland Impressions 1

“Life is but earth translated into force. . . . We are only earth transposed into force, just as coal is formed into flame and heat by the transmutation process applied to it.”
— from The Notebooks of David Ignatow, edited by Ralph J. Mills, Jr.

The landscape around Keflavik, Iceland

Lava rock

In Iceland, you can’t escape noticing the violent volcanic forces that shaped, and continue to shape, the landscape.  Coming from the Pacific Northwest, I was especially aware of the almost total absence of trees.  During my two-day stopover, I limited my explorations to the area near the Keflavik airport — I did not even make the hour bus ride to Reykjavik — and this rocky, moss-covered lava landscape was what I saw in all directions.

The Blue Lagoon (notice the people in the foreground soaking in the thermal waters)

Stones and waters in the Blue Lagoon

Of course, no trip to Iceland is complete without a soak in the thermal-heated waters of the Blue Lagoon, this country’s number one tourist attraction.  While Iceland does have plenty of natural thermal pools, the Blue Lagoon is actually artificial, created from the overflow from the adjacent thermal power station.  I enjoyed a relaxing soak and my skin felt revitalized from silicone mud available in tubs around the pools.

Iceland’s stark and alien landscape feels not forbidding, but rather remote and barren.  The wide open skies give a feeling of clarity and expansiveness.  I felt that my impressions were best captured by some of my camera’s photographic effects like the following:

Lava rock with tunnel effect

Blue Lagoon with kaleidoscope effect

Mossy growth on lava rocks with tunnel effect

And these photos taken on a short hike over the lava rock:

Contemplative Spaces

“Benedictine spirituality is more intent on developing thinking people than it is on developing pious people.”
     — from Wisdom Distilled from the Daily:  Living the Rule of St. Benedict Today by Joan Chittister

"Contemplation is the pursuit of meaning." Joan Chittister

 St. John’s University was a beautiful environment, which fostered reflection and contemplation.  It was the perfect place for our retreat. 

The morning light streams through the facade of stained glass, St. John's Abbey Church

Interior, St. John's Abbey Church

A short tunnel leads to the monastery's private, enclosed garden

Campus trees in the morning sun

I hiked 1-1/2 miles along a lakeshore trail to the small Stella Maris Chapel

The Great Hall, St. John's University

Patterned reflections in a hallway at the Abbey Guest House

 

“To empty one’s mind of all thought and refill the void with a spirit greater than oneself, is to extend the mind into a realm not accessible by conventional processes of reason.”
     — from The Language of Drawing by Edward Hill