Tag Archives: capecodogram

certainty is…

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the great enemy of unity.

This quote is from the uniquely well-timed 2024 film “CONCLAVE” about the selection of a new Pope. It’s haunted me ever since. Here is the entire quote and the clip from the film.

“My brothers and sisters...let me tell you that the one sin I have come to fear more than any other is certainty. Certainty is the great enemy of unity..our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand in hand with doubt. If there was only certainty, and if there was no doubt, there would be no mystery, and therefore no need for faith.”
―Robert Harris, Conclave

CERTAIN: known for sure; established beyond doubt

 ENEMY: something harmful or deadly 

UNITY: a condition of harmony

A tidy package of CERTAINTY is rarely going to arrive on my doorstep.

How can I learn to manage my emotional distress when certainty isn’t possible?

• Don't believe everything I think, it's just a thought (NOT a fact).
• Acknowledge my feelings without judgment (or try to anyway).
• Accept that I may never have certainty on this topic.

• Remind myself of the rest of the quote: "...our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand in hand with doubt.  If there was only certainty, and if there was no doubt, there would be no mystery, and therefore no need for faith."

Sunrise on Town Neck Beach—Sandwich, Massachusetts—July 3rd, 2025

the odd uneven time of August…

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August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time. —Sylvia Plath/author

Stumbling upon this quote from notoriously depressive author Sylvia Plath seems almost eerily on target for my late summer vibe.

Looking back I can trace a lot of unique choices and unusual behaviors to the odd and uneven August(s) throughout my life. I impulsively changed colleges last minute, transferred a year later (even though things were going well), and later quit graduate school all in August without consulting anyone.

I wondered if what I’m drawn to photograph in August could offer some clues into my late summer state of mind.

MYSTERY: A few days ago I saw these coyote tracks and alongside those of a small foot. I followed the tracks as the sun rose over Cape Cod Bay…my imagination thoroughly sparked.

Is there a WILD CHILD running with the coyotes on TOWN NECK BEACH?

You have a coyote inside you, and you have to get it out.  —Chuck Jones/animator

SHELTER FROM THE SUN:

A SMALL ACT OF AUGUST REVOLUTION:

Last week I watched this young girl on vacation with her family walk up and down the beach with seaweed on her head. They didn’t notice for a long time and she was annoyed. This seems like an August vibe to me.

OUT OF THE ORDINARY:

RANDOM SPARK & MUSE:

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE:

DISTRACTION:

I looked at this art for the week while I stitched, other folks did too, funny how the brain fills in what isn’t there. I’m working on a new version now…oh, the odd uneven time of August.

Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance, and none can say while some fields will blossom and others lay brown beneath the August sun. —Ken Nerburn