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I went to see the Moon but I found a thousand fallen suns
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Posting today as part of colorchallenge WEDNESDAY YELLOW challenge
All this pictures were taken last Saturday (late July 2018). Me and my partner @hedac went on a stroll trying to see the Moon Eclipse that took place last 27th of July. Sadly clouds didn't allow to appreciate the eclipse in its full red moon glory and we only caught it as the Moon grew back to full brightness again, but we found this location and we went the day after to take these pictures featured in this article.
So even if weather boycotted a little bit our sighting of the Blood Moon, at least it worked to find this lovely location. Above, not the best eclipse picture but what we glimpsed :)
Location and filming for forthcoming video
Location is close to an abandoned village called Guendulain (Navarre, Spain). To see the sunflowers spreading and just the ruins emerging from them was rather magical. As we had just found it the day before and I am finishing editing a videoclip of Latvian folk song Līgo (encouraged by fellow steemian friend @lindahas who encouraged me to learn a song of her country). It is a overall a worship of Summer hymn and I had still a few gaps in the video so location was perfect to shoot some final scenes). I will share that here shortly but meanwhile here. Almost done, I will share it soon.
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Enchanted sunflower, thou
Who gazest ever true and tender On the sun’s revolving splendour
Pedro Calderon de la Barca (Poet)
A symbol of strength, endurance and loyalty
They look like thousands of fallen suns blooming in Summer... so yellow and vibrant, a representation of our life giving star. The petals of a sun flower are also known as "rays" for that reason. Unmistakable with their brilliant and vibrant appearance and amazingly large size. There are different varieties of different sizes but some are as large and tall as I am, glorious giant flowers.
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As to give a sunflower to your beloved it represents warmth, long life and endurance. Sun flowers remain in full bloom for a long time enduring the hottest days of Summer and tolerating lack of rain and draughts. The upright and strong stem also represent the strength of bonds and loyalty. It is usually given as a gift on the 3rd anniversary of a wedding.
I love a sunflower and I believe in love power
(Tears for Fears, quote from the lyrics of "Sowing the Seeds of Love")
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Vitality, hope, renewal... LIGHT
It was worshipped by Incan Empire priestesses who used to wear replicas made of gold in their garments.
In China, Royalty used to eat sunflower seeds in order to have a long life and are related with vitality and luck. In China in fact they are a symbol of *lasting happiness" The symbolism of "yellow" colour that I covered in previous article also apply for this "light bringer". It is easy to think why these flowers are usually associated with "happy" feelings.
They are not only strikingly beautiful but also useful providing and numerous edible sunflower seeds (at least the most common Helianthus annus which we grow for that purpose) and oil for cooking and beauty treatments. Crops and fields of these beauties, also a symbol of "abundance".
Sunflowers also known for their symmetry based on Fibonacci numbers
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Above: the disk of a sunflower are made of made up of many little flowers that will become seeds.
Moving into the Light and the Legend of Clytie and Apollo
Sunflowers belong to the family Asteraceae and genus Helianthus (helios=Sun, Anthos=flower) and they move and stretch moving towards the light by phototropism. or heliotropism. Sunflowers are one of several plant species that make optimum use of light by turning to face the sun. It is like a "solar tracking" triggered in fact by phyto-hormones (Auxins) presents in the stems. This happens until the flower is "mature" and the seeds begin to ripen. Then they usually stop growing and droop downwards and stop their movement.
But let's explain it in a more romantic way
Clytie in Green mythology was a water nymph (daughter of Oceanus, the Water god and Tethys) that turned into a flower grieving over here unrequited love for the God of the Sun, Apollo (son of Zeus), and thus she is always facing the sun looking for her love return for her in his Chariot. She fell in love with him but was ignored by Apollo who fell for another Water Nymph (Daphne). Clytie sat on a rock and spent nine days without food or water until she transformed into a flower, and even to this day, she keeps looking at her beloved sun from dawn to sunset. Thus sometimes Sunflowers are used as symbols of "platonic love". At the beginning the Greek legend transformed her into a turnsole (Heliotropium) as in fact all sunflowers (Helianthus) are native from America, but modern retelling and famous Victorian and Prerraphaelite painting used "Sunflowers" to represent the grieving nymph.
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Although Clytie's love was not corresponded as Apollo fell in love with Daphne due to an Eros (God of love) arrow, the irony of it is that he was despised by Daphne who wished herself to be transformed into a laurel tree not to be bothered by Apollo unsolicited love. Apollo had an argument with Eros and he was struck by an arrow who made him fall in love with the water nymph but Daphne was hit by a lead arrow who made her despise Apollo as strongly as he loved her. Finally she prayed for help to her father and was transformed into a laurel tree. Apollo was heartbroken and remained faithful and it made laurel leaves "evergreen" because of his love.
Poor Clytie, if it had not been for the interference of love arrows...
Other Articles in the Blooming series
As some of my followers here know I've been sharing articles about flowers in a series. Here some links to previous published articles.
Feel free to check and feedback, if you like them and posts are expired consider to vote any of my posts. If you like my work please consider to follow/resteem
Priscilla Hernandez
singer-songwriter & illustrator
http://yidneth.com
WOW! Beautiful shots and very well presented. I love it.
Thank you, some will be part of a Summer music video that we will premier soon.
So beautiful! That many sunflowers, wow! I'd be in such awe. Are they in a cultivated field? The way you described the abandoned village, it sounds like they're growing wild, which is just amazing to me. The birds must be in heaven.
Always love your work. Thanks for the sunflower smiles!
Guendulain is indeed a deserted abandoned village with a church and small castle, but it is a cultivated field that spreads basically to the village. We walk there often.
This is not a shitty post. Keep trying haha
You are as beautiful as always with the sunflowers ;-) :-*
Not the same you photographed among sunflowers so many years ago... Or maybe the same among these new sunflowers. Awww
Yes I need to practise s***posting more. I promise I will do a shorter one
Indeed, you match the sunflowers with your lovely golden locks. <3
Thank you. They are at walking distance from my house. There was a fire but it respected them. It was really lovely to find them, in fact filmed some scenesfor a videoclip coming soon.
Aww thanks for stopping by 🐀 hugs
Really love these :)
I love sunflowers, how you wrote... a field of fallen suns. You fits perfectly inbetween them :).
And I really like the romantic story, it's sad but I love such mythology stories :) .
Aww thanks so much. Yes, I love fairy tales and myths so I like to include them. The crown was a bday gift from a friend and though daffodils blended in
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Very nice, you're one of them :)
Thank you, I was a little bit lost in the fallen suns crowd, haha
this is so pretty I'm waiting for someone to tell me its all CGI - I swear.
Haha it is all cgi...
Lol
Aww wish I could show you the woods
Off to bed to meditate at least lol
Great Moon photo and you look like you belong in that field. Those photos of you and sunflowers are so natural, like you have been there, with them, for ages. Much love honey 💚
always love your posts, and your pics are always awesome. this line is an amazing description:" I went to see the Moon but I found a thousand fallen suns"
Hello @yidneth, thank you for sharing this creative work! We just stopped by to say that you've been upvoted by the @creativecrypto magazine. The Creative Crypto is all about art on the blockchain and learning from creatives like you. Looking forward to crossing paths again soon. Steem on!
Magnificent! Such stunning beauty in your photos and in the words:
What wonderful poetry in that line! 🌻
This post is truly special - both your photography and very detailed writing on it - they truly look like Fallen Suns, especially in the shots where their heads are down! Nature is so beautiful and you make it look even more gorgeous <3
It constantly inspires my music and drawings. Photography and plotting these photosoots is maybe more a hobby derived from it, but I like to represent stories. Nature is home.
Let me start by saying that I didn’t have the time today to read the whole post. But boy did I enjoy watching the photo’s!!! They took me straight away into a fantasy world! Thanks for sharing! And now following your!
Thank you @bjornb My photography is usually inspired in fantasy. I'm mostly a musician and illustrator (also fairy tale/ fantasy music) but photography is for fun and to support my other artistic fields, thanks for your feedback, glad it conveyed you that even without the words
I believe that every medium, or art as you will, can (should?) convey feelings without the need of another form. Photography without Words (a picture speaks a thousand words?), music without words, poetry without music, ... Bringing them together makes it even stronger.
What instrument do you play? And looking forward to experience your other work!