Weekly Photo Challenge: Journey
The photo challenge this week asks us to illustrate the word “journey.” (And what a great word it is, too!)
Lewis Carroll wrote,
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.
There’s certainly truth in that, both positive and negative; we don’t always know where we’re going, and the road that takes us there may be paved with whatever is next – the good, bad or indifferent.
I like what Ursula K. LeGuin wrote about journeying:
It’s good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end.
I captured the photo below – downtown Miami – through a car window during a recent journey.
The building in the center of the photo – the one shaded in yellow – is the Miami Freedom Tower. It once was a haven for Cuban immigrants who journeyed to freedom.
Photo by Andrea O'Connell
The journeys that this beautiful Red Shouldered hawk once enjoyed are a part of the past now.
This Florida beauty is held at the Flamingo Gardens, in Davie Florida. a wildlife sanctuary for injured and/or endangered animals.
This lovely fellow can no longer fly as a result of a serious injury. (If he were not cared for at Flamingo Gardens there would be little chance for his survival.)
He’s well taken care of, as are all the animals in the Flamingo Gardens Wildlife Sanctuary.
The juxtaposition of the bird and the fence is striking. This is a bird whose journeys were no doubt expansive, reaching far and wide.
It’s so sad to see this bird fenced in like this. His journeys are in the past, now – only a dream.
Photo by Andrea O'Connell
only dreamin' 
Reblogged this on Loving Jazz Photo Blog.
Very thoughtful posts. We must always remember to enjoy the ourney, to pay attention to our lives, one never knows when we may be injured like the hawk, unable to journey where we want to go.
Hi Maggie, You are absolutely right! Thank you for your insightful comments! 🙂
Love the combination of the two photos!
Hey there Jfb. Thanks so much…. 🙂
Great entry Andrea ,Good work 🙂
Thanks a bunch, Jake!
I’m with jfb57…I love the juxtaposition of the two photos, both beautiful in their own ways…
Hi Sue…. Many thanks.. I liked the sense of “freedom” in a journey on the one hand, but when the fence comes down on one’s freedom, the journey goes within…. Anyway, thanks!
Hi Andrea, love the pic of the hawk. I was out in the yard last week and saw 6-7 soaring near my home. One was chased through my yard by four crows….go figure…the hawk could have torn them up if so inclined. We have gone a little crazy over the last couple of years with setting up feeders for several different bird species, squirrel population and the misunderstood raccoon. My raccoon population has grown. It’s up to nine currently that come visit every night. My favorites are a mom with two babies that stand on their hind legs and wave their arms for peanuts or marsh mellows, it’s a site to behold. This won”t last too much longer because mating time is around the corner and she will be pushing her current offspring out of the den. We are wondering if the babies will keep showing up on their own or will they truly be banished from the area like the articles we have read. Oh well….we are on nature watch to see what happens.
Have a Happy Easter!
Hey DP!! So wonderful to hear from you. LOL! Racoons are misunderstood, aren’t they? I haven’t run into too many of them, though sadly, I’ve seen them on the side of the road…. It would be wonderful to be able to meet them up close as you do! I hope they don’t get banned from your enjoyment! We have a similar issue with the Muscovy Ducks…. People call them nuisances, but I love to see them – especially with their little chicks in tow. Anyway, hope you have a Happy Easter, too!
“journey to freedom” – that’s a good term!
Hi Frizz…I agree with you there….:)
Great post. Wonderful combination of these two photographs. 🙂
Hi Arindam…. Many thanks… I really appreciate that!
Stunning buildings!
And that bird’s eyes.. wow!
Hi Nelson, I agree – the buildings are really something… and the Freedom Tower is so interesting. I’ve never been inside of it…. one of these days I will. Thanks so much for your comments and for visiting!
Love the Lewis Carroll quote. It’s so true!
sensitive choices andrea, happy/sad 🙂
many thanks for stopping by my blog with a ‘Like’! Love your pretty hawk here.
I hate to see raptors behind bars but the rescue and rehab centers I admire. Beautiful capture the red shouldered.