JULIET ROHDE-BROWN, PhD
Spending my early years in Hawaii, often barefoot and caked with mud or sand, nurtured me into a deep appreciation of our reciprocal relationship with the natural world. I found solace, play, and sanctuary by landing in special spots where I could be alone with a tree, for instance. My younger brother, John’s, brain injury and these long moments in nature opened in me a sense of what Bohm refers to as Implicate Order. The dance between the visible and invisible became a curiosity, my life’s inquiry. As a psychologist and educator, I am often in awe of the valuable role that nature and the arts serve in integrating difficult experiences, for they are collaborators in grounding us somatically, weaving the emotional regulation process, and deepening complexity, creativity, and a sense of sacred mysteries. For my own self-care, I enjoy writing and singing songs, experimenting with abstract painting, and engaging in meditative practice. Taking photos with my iPhone while on contemplative walks has also become a meaningful pastime.
Intersubjectivity
(Digital photo. Shot on iPhone,
10” High x 10” Wide)
A pair of orange dragonflies glide in tandem and their images are reflected in the water of a lotus pond. This photo, taken on a contemplative walk several years ago at Seaside Gardens in Carpinteria, has continued to engage me. I reflect on expanded considerations of intersubjectivity that include the nonhuman and the natural world. Standing at the edge of the pond, I watched this pair flying about and finally ending up side by side in synchrony. My experience in that moment of being pulled to the image speaks to the value and beauty of attunement in individual relationships and collective and ecological contexts. Personally speaking, Dragonflies have become a kind of totem for me since my father’s passing, so the moment was meaningful in that regard as well.