I walked along a familiar path, but from the opposite direction. It may have been my new orientation that made me notice this tree for the first time in ten winter seasons of weekly visits. Maybe I was focused on texture because of this month’s challenge at HeyJude’s blog to find something rough to photograph.

I was drawn in by the rough texture of this stocky palm truck created by the overlapping pattern where dead fronds had been cut off and the beautiful colors that accented the texture.

When I zoomed in close, I found the unique characteristics of the trunk that made it so irresistible from a distance.

My first impulse was to marvel at the beauty of this small statue among the lush growth and different shapes of leaves. But if you go back and look at the first photo, I think you will appreciate how pleasing the whole is. There are so many textures and contrasts. Although I photographed parts, I most enjoy the whole. This is an excellent example of Systems Theory – that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

I have been listening to news about the world-wide health crisis as I have been writing this post. In Florida activities are being cancelled and we are encouraged to keep social distance from each other. As I integrate my thoughts about my photography and Systems Theory with our health crisis maybe we need to remember that acting together and keeping everyone’s well-being in mind will help us through. I do believe that the whole of our country and the world will be better and greater when we work together, when we sum our parts. Here in the US we are looking for guidance from our president and unfortunately he just isn’t able to understand how to lead. Let’s work together without him by keeping ourselves and our neighbors safe. And let’s call our congressional representative to let them know that we want the government to make sure all communities have sufficient test kits and unemployment is made available to people who can’t work because of the virus.