Lens Artists Photo Challenge #384 – What Astonishes You?

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What have you seen or experienced that has astonished you? The challenge is to include photos about things that astonish you and tell us why you are astonished.

I got the inspiration for this challenge from these words by Mary Oliver from her poem “Sometimes”:

“Instructions for living a life:

Pay attention

Be astonished

Tell about it”

According to the Merrriam-Webster Dictionary the definition of astonished is “feeling or showing great surprise or wonder”.

There are so many astonishing places and things to experience in our world if we just take the time to pay attention to what is around us. Sometimes we can be surprised by something in our own backyard or neighborhood. It may be something in nature or it could be something created by humans like a piece of art or interesting architecture. We may want to travel to see astonishing wonders of nature or things created by humans. The challenge is to show us what astonishes you. What makes you go “WOW”?

I can find wonders all around my neighborhood and my own back yard when I slow down and look around me. It’s the little things like these that bring me joy. I’m astonished that this weird looking caterpillar on the left will become a beautiful Gulf Fritillary like the one on the right.

I plant flowers in my garden to attract hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators. During the warm months I keep my hummingbird feeder filled with fresh nectar. No matter how many times I have witnessed it I am always astonished when I see one of the huumers hovering in mid air.

I am always astonished at the vastness and power of the ocean. These waves were crashing on the beach as a tropical storm was approaching Tybee Island, Georgia.

Sometimes my husband and I travel long distances to see astonishing sights. When I pay attention I often find astonishing things I wasn’t expecting to see.

I was in awe of the ancient giant Redwoods in Redwoods National Park in California. I spent most of my time looking up, taking in their enormous size.

And then I looked down at the forest floor and was astonished to discover the beautiful trillium flowers were blooming.

My husband and I have traveled to Arizona twice to visit the Grand Canyon. The canyon is awe-inspiring and makes me feel how truly small I am in the grand scheme of things.

We spent two months in Alaska in 2013 and every day brought new things that astonished me. Seeing and hearing a glacier calving was one of those events that has always stayed with me.

Not only was observing Whooping Cranes in the wild an astonishing experience, knowing that they migrate 2,500 miles from Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge every fall was even more astonishing. After wintering in Texas, they begin their migration back north to Canada about mid March each year. We made a special trip to Texas to see these magnificent birds who once were on the brink of extinction.

I am always astonished when I see ancient structures built by humans that have survived for thousands of years. I’ve never seen the Pyramids or the Great Wall of China but I have seen the Cliff Dwellings of Mesa Verde National Park. How did they build these structures and how did the people survive in the harsh environment?

Last week I enjoyed all of your wonderful shapes and designs in response to Tina’s challenge. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge..

I hope you will join in for this week’s challenge. I can’t wait to see what astonishes you. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to this post.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, February 14 at noon eastern time when Ritva will be hosting the challenge.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

83 thoughts on “Lens Artists Photo Challenge #384 – What Astonishes You?”

    1. Egidio, thank you so much for your kind words. And thank you for your beautiful contribution to the challenge. We saw the Whooping Cranes in Goose Island State Park near Rockport one year in early March. I hope you will be able to see them and get some good captures one day.

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    1. Patti, thank you so much! I’m really glad you like the images and the challenge. I have fond memories of the glacier, whooping cranes and Grand Canyon. I’m glad I could share those experiences.

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  10. From the very, very small to the very, very big- I’m astonished by many of the same things, Beth. How hummingbirds hover, and how a caterpillar becomes a butterfly are absolutely wonders of nature. I’ve only ever seen those cranes on TV so thanks for sharing and have a great week xx

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  11. This is a great theme for the week, Beth. Your examples of what we see in nature are amazing! I LOVE the immense height of the red wood as you looked up, then the gorgeous wildflowers peeking from below! Astonishing, indeed.

    This works with my Sunday Stills color challenge theme this week, hooray! Your trillium is amethyst color, too 🙂

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  12. Loved your challenge this week Beth! And of course your personal entry with is beautiful from start to finish. I’m totally jealous of your whooping crane – it and your grand canyon image are my favorites this week.

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    1. Tina, thank you so much. I had fun putting this challenge together. The hard part was deciding what to leave out! Our timing worked out perfectly to see the Whooping Cranes. We were there before they started their migration back to Canada. Truly a once in a lifetime opportunity. I’m glad you liked the image.

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  17. Beautiful series. I love the glaciers calving and the waves in Georgia. I’m always astonished at the power of water from one drop of water forming stalegmites to the oceans around the world. Even snowmelt has a lot of power to sculpt the landscape. For all the record-breaking snow, rain and ice in recent times, I’m sure we’ll have equally astonishing floods.

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  23. That was a really fun assignment. I enjoyed myself thoroughly. And you gave such wonderful examples, a broad spectrum of possibilities. My favourite is the caterpillar and butterfly (if you care to check out my post, you might understand why). The colours are amazing besides the astonishing fact of a caterpillar – cocoon – butterfly transformation.

    https://picturesimperfectblog.com/2026/02/08/getting-close-and-blowing-up/

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    1. Paul, thank you for your wonderful response to the challenge. I’m glad you enjoyed the challenge. I love watching the hummingbirds but they are hard to capture. Thank you for following my blog.

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