Wow Dave this was so beautiful and majestic. I felt at home reading this. It was so vivid and poetic and what a deep celebration of the east coast of Australia.
Thankyou Jennae! I'm back up in the Northern Rivers now, getting ready for floods again. I do love rain, but we may be about to receive too much of that otherwise very good thing....
Hey Richard. I spent all day looking at my photos and unable to write. There’s a big tropical cyclone barrelling in so I’ve also been preparing for a flood. Then the first rain started, and my thoughts condensed with it, and this is what precipitated out….
Wow, Dave. I felt I was there with you - walking the shoreline, you, little, you, older - the memorial - the earth curving - the waves washing ashore-Physalia physalis and the quiet terror. Ah! I envy you so much, but grateful that you take us on these trips with you. Thank you for sharing 💜
Thank you for taking me on this little adventure, Dave. How marvelous it must be to walk over to the sea like this. I cannot imagine. I will have to contemplate this idea of consciousness--it is new to me. Has it stormed yet?
Hi Rebecca. It's interesting.... I'm so glad you came for the walk.
I included a few references on quantum consciousness at the end. It makes more sense to me than just lots and lots of electrical circuits firing electricity around the place. Our neurons clearly do an awful lot of that too but consciousness - self awareness - that seems qualitatively different....
Cyclone Alfred is doing that slow meteorological bowling ball thing, curving its track as it spins. Right now it looks like the Gold Coast and Brisbane, North of us, will be centre of the target, but they spin anticlockwise so our region - South of the system - will get the heaviest rain. Predictions of up to 15 inches in 24 hours. The last big flood, 3 years ago, came through our ground floor about 3 feet deep. Most of our livings paces are one level above that, so we should be safe. All stocked up with emergency supplies like a true Prepper (minus the guns). Kinda hoping it doesn't happen again though....
Time wise - we are still 24 - 48 hours away from the start of the heavy rain, and then it depends whether it moves on fast, or sits still and swamps us.
David, thank you for this. I felt I was walking with you. So enjoy the photos and reflections. Also the questions.
Early this year I wondered a lot about memory and thoughts and the wonders of the nervous system. After looking with reverence I felt in awe of the infinitely complex network that lends itself to our experience of being alive. So much more than electrical meat, as you say. No, the nervous system is itself alive and dynamic and holds so much more than mere mechanics and pathways. In fact, the nervous system caretakes beautifully. I continue to marvel at this aspect of the body and so much more. How perfect to end your post with the tree, which is mirrored within the neurons of the brain.
Oh Susan... thankyou! Yes... the entire nervous system is remarkable. I was reading about the complex signals from brain to heart - and back again - and how they change with stimulus, but ebb away when we lose conscious thought and sleep.
Trees are - yes - their own image of complexity, and that's before we consider everything happening underground.....
Ha ha! I do read fast! Yes! And always on the look out for your posts. I am a ravenous reader for them because they bring so much that I desire to experience and what wonderful descriptions you give and how you take the reader along.
I’ve come to feel very at home in expressing the quantum world as profoundly human and primal…I’ve written about that myself and recognize a glimmer of the collective consciousness here as well.
Now you have me deeply interested! I am out of time right now - but I will come back to Substack soon to read some of your work. I just had a very quick look - and I can't wait to read more (even though I will indeed have to wait !)
I really enjoyed this Dave, as others have said, it feels like I’m there with you. And despite obvious differences, there are so many parallels to my favourite beach here in North Yorkshire, with its incredible geology and beautiful pieces of nature’s art. I hope you’re still above the waterline, all the best to you, Yorkshire Dave
Hey Dave! Thanks mate! Yep - still above high water mark. Flood peak arrived this morning, then the rain came back and we have stayed at the peak all day - but its still about a metre below "village gets flooded" level, and probably 2 metres below "Meg and Dave get an indoor pool" level.
Your writing pulls me in like the tide—one moment I’m riding the waves of memory, the next I’m standing on the shore, feeling the weight of time in every grain of sand. The way you blend nature, physics, and nostalgia makes this piece feel both intimate and infinite, like a conversation between the past and the present. Absolutely stunning.
That is the most beautiful compliment.... You have made my day! (Not an easy day, because a Tropical Cyclone is in progress outside. As a Floridian - in a Hurricane prone State - you will know what that's like!)
Oh! I'm so sorry to hear that.... I know you guys were hammered hard. Good luck with the rebuild.
We live on a river bank, in a very definite flood zone. It is beyond gorgeous 99.8% of the time. On days like this - and the next 3 or 4 - we pay the emotional rent. The last flood came through our ground floor about 3 feet deep.
Anyway - you will know what it's like watching rain radar and online river gauges. We might get lucky, but we have done the "Prepper" thing and we are good for whatever happens.
What an incredible little adventure. As soon as I read this part little electrode lit up in my mind: "Each stone is an inadvertent artwork, laid down as soft sediment once then covered, buried in the deep deep printing press of the earth, flushed with mineral rich waters and coloured, compressed and preserved."
What a perfect description. And the "mandala" rock...I'd be in heaven walking and for hours and probably never get very far on these shorelines. I'm like an overexcited child combing the sands for unique finding, picking things up that I love...filling every possible space that resembles a pocket with my "gold". At some point I began bringing little bags to hold my findings...then I need to set limits for myself with my collecting (which never really worked)...and I could go on and on. I was probably born near seas and oceans at one point in time.
Funny enough I have been doing reading and reminding myself about quantum connections and interconnectedness, which I also recently wrote about and posted...an example of the quantum world working as we friends and writer are tapping into and interweaving with the veils and threads of time and dimension of others. What a beautiful existence we have....
There is definitely a sense in which minds connect through word and thought, and all kinds of serendipities occur.
I see patterns in stone wherever I go. That one was sublime.... and like you I run the risk of sampling and carrying - stones, shells, feathers, seedpods... I do it far less now, reminding myself that this shell, that rock, or branch or flower.... is already precisely where it needs to be.
you have all my quanta giggling and wiggling in rhythmic delight! thank you for this exploration of spacetime!
Hey, friend Jared. Thankyou back!
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Wow Dave this was so beautiful and majestic. I felt at home reading this. It was so vivid and poetic and what a deep celebration of the east coast of Australia.
Thankyou Jennae! I'm back up in the Northern Rivers now, getting ready for floods again. I do love rain, but we may be about to receive too much of that otherwise very good thing....
How lovely, stay safe Dave!
Your post prompted this, David. https://marksjn.substack.com/p/under-a-tree?r=wlqa
And thankyou for the link to that lovely poem, mate. :)
I'm always learning from you, Dave. You're a wonderful/delightful chronicler.
Thankyou, friend Jeremy. Keeping it below the max email length is the tricky part. There are so man y things to write about....
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Moved hugely by this piece. Inspirational writing and gets right to the gut. Thanks, as ever, Dave.
Hey Richard. I spent all day looking at my photos and unable to write. There’s a big tropical cyclone barrelling in so I’ve also been preparing for a flood. Then the first rain started, and my thoughts condensed with it, and this is what precipitated out….
I am glad you like it.
D :)
You and Meg take care.
Thanks mate. We have done the "Prepper" thing (minus the guns) and we are ready for whatever happens....
We have enough food for a week of isolation - and enough red wine too!!
Wow, Dave. I felt I was there with you - walking the shoreline, you, little, you, older - the memorial - the earth curving - the waves washing ashore-Physalia physalis and the quiet terror. Ah! I envy you so much, but grateful that you take us on these trips with you. Thank you for sharing 💜
Dear Naz! You win the speed reader award! (A virtual hug from afar)
I thought I would hit publish - then run away to bed before anyone commented.
Not so!
But thankyou, my friend.
My quantum waves send their best wishes to your own...
Dave :)
Thank you for taking me on this little adventure, Dave. How marvelous it must be to walk over to the sea like this. I cannot imagine. I will have to contemplate this idea of consciousness--it is new to me. Has it stormed yet?
Hi Rebecca. It's interesting.... I'm so glad you came for the walk.
I included a few references on quantum consciousness at the end. It makes more sense to me than just lots and lots of electrical circuits firing electricity around the place. Our neurons clearly do an awful lot of that too but consciousness - self awareness - that seems qualitatively different....
Cyclone Alfred is doing that slow meteorological bowling ball thing, curving its track as it spins. Right now it looks like the Gold Coast and Brisbane, North of us, will be centre of the target, but they spin anticlockwise so our region - South of the system - will get the heaviest rain. Predictions of up to 15 inches in 24 hours. The last big flood, 3 years ago, came through our ground floor about 3 feet deep. Most of our livings paces are one level above that, so we should be safe. All stocked up with emergency supplies like a true Prepper (minus the guns). Kinda hoping it doesn't happen again though....
Time wise - we are still 24 - 48 hours away from the start of the heavy rain, and then it depends whether it moves on fast, or sits still and swamps us.
Oh, but do be careful! I love all that prepper’s stuff. Can’t help myself. Nobody’d ever starve in my house for months.
David, thank you for this. I felt I was walking with you. So enjoy the photos and reflections. Also the questions.
Early this year I wondered a lot about memory and thoughts and the wonders of the nervous system. After looking with reverence I felt in awe of the infinitely complex network that lends itself to our experience of being alive. So much more than electrical meat, as you say. No, the nervous system is itself alive and dynamic and holds so much more than mere mechanics and pathways. In fact, the nervous system caretakes beautifully. I continue to marvel at this aspect of the body and so much more. How perfect to end your post with the tree, which is mirrored within the neurons of the brain.
Oh Susan... thankyou! Yes... the entire nervous system is remarkable. I was reading about the complex signals from brain to heart - and back again - and how they change with stimulus, but ebb away when we lose conscious thought and sleep.
Trees are - yes - their own image of complexity, and that's before we consider everything happening underground.....
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Ha ha! I do read fast! Yes! And always on the look out for your posts. I am a ravenous reader for them because they bring so much that I desire to experience and what wonderful descriptions you give and how you take the reader along.
Much love, my friend and have a peaceful night ❤️
I’ve come to feel very at home in expressing the quantum world as profoundly human and primal…I’ve written about that myself and recognize a glimmer of the collective consciousness here as well.
Dear Nikki
Now you have me deeply interested! I am out of time right now - but I will come back to Substack soon to read some of your work. I just had a very quick look - and I can't wait to read more (even though I will indeed have to wait !)
Very Best Wishes - Dave :)
I really enjoyed this Dave, as others have said, it feels like I’m there with you. And despite obvious differences, there are so many parallels to my favourite beach here in North Yorkshire, with its incredible geology and beautiful pieces of nature’s art. I hope you’re still above the waterline, all the best to you, Yorkshire Dave
Hey Dave! Thanks mate! Yep - still above high water mark. Flood peak arrived this morning, then the rain came back and we have stayed at the peak all day - but its still about a metre below "village gets flooded" level, and probably 2 metres below "Meg and Dave get an indoor pool" level.
I'm glad you liked the Post. If you liked this one then, if you haven't read it, I suspect you will like Splash Zone even more: https://davidkirkby.substack.com/p/splash-zone?r=471m47
Your writing pulls me in like the tide—one moment I’m riding the waves of memory, the next I’m standing on the shore, feeling the weight of time in every grain of sand. The way you blend nature, physics, and nostalgia makes this piece feel both intimate and infinite, like a conversation between the past and the present. Absolutely stunning.
Hi Lysa
That is the most beautiful compliment.... You have made my day! (Not an easy day, because a Tropical Cyclone is in progress outside. As a Floridian - in a Hurricane prone State - you will know what that's like!)
I send my profound thanks...
Quantum Surfing is my fair weather sequel to the much stormier "Splash Zone." Both hold a piece of me... https://davidkirkby.substack.com/p/splash-zone
Best wishes to you from Australia
Dave :)
You are very welcome. I definitely know how you feel. Our house was flooded during the last hurricane and is still being rebuilt. Please stay safe!
Oh! I'm so sorry to hear that.... I know you guys were hammered hard. Good luck with the rebuild.
We live on a river bank, in a very definite flood zone. It is beyond gorgeous 99.8% of the time. On days like this - and the next 3 or 4 - we pay the emotional rent. The last flood came through our ground floor about 3 feet deep.
Anyway - you will know what it's like watching rain radar and online river gauges. We might get lucky, but we have done the "Prepper" thing and we are good for whatever happens.
It's all fuel for Poetry!!
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Beautiful writing darling 🌊🌊. I shoulda gone w’ya that day!
Gorgeous woman.... you are always with me, everywhere I go...
xxx
D :)
What an incredible little adventure. As soon as I read this part little electrode lit up in my mind: "Each stone is an inadvertent artwork, laid down as soft sediment once then covered, buried in the deep deep printing press of the earth, flushed with mineral rich waters and coloured, compressed and preserved."
What a perfect description. And the "mandala" rock...I'd be in heaven walking and for hours and probably never get very far on these shorelines. I'm like an overexcited child combing the sands for unique finding, picking things up that I love...filling every possible space that resembles a pocket with my "gold". At some point I began bringing little bags to hold my findings...then I need to set limits for myself with my collecting (which never really worked)...and I could go on and on. I was probably born near seas and oceans at one point in time.
Funny enough I have been doing reading and reminding myself about quantum connections and interconnectedness, which I also recently wrote about and posted...an example of the quantum world working as we friends and writer are tapping into and interweaving with the veils and threads of time and dimension of others. What a beautiful existence we have....
Oh!! Quantum Entanglement, friend Sylvia...
There is definitely a sense in which minds connect through word and thought, and all kinds of serendipities occur.
I see patterns in stone wherever I go. That one was sublime.... and like you I run the risk of sampling and carrying - stones, shells, feathers, seedpods... I do it far less now, reminding myself that this shell, that rock, or branch or flower.... is already precisely where it needs to be.
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Hi Melissa
Thankyou! It was the solidity and patience of the tree, and the way it has clearly weathered many storms and hardship....
It sounds as though - like myself - you were fortunate to have wonderful parents.
Best Wishes - Dave :)
Hi Mary. You should come to Australia! Especially if you like deserts, but the coasts are gorgeous too....
We have had several wonderful road trips through the USA - visiting every National Park we came to!
Dave :)