BOOKS
ON WINGS LIKE ANGELS
To soar like the eagle has been the human dream since we first evolved on this lovely, now-endangered, planet. To view the land and water in all its glory from above. To worship its contours. To pay homage to its sheer physical beauty. Viewing the earth from the sky, there arise unbidden an awe, an ahh, an aha.
As a child, I longed to fly. As an adult, I became a photographer. Wonder of wonders, my two passions have been incorporated into a new species of aircraft: an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with a high-definition camera. A drone.
It makes it possible to fly vicariously and photograph the earth from above. The images are fresh and exciting, a perspective never experienced before.
The prophet Isaiah captured this aspiration poetically, saying that believers “will soar on wings like eagles.” Those words echo the awe you and I can experience as this mechanical eagle photographs land and water.
MOTHER WATER, MISTRESS SKY
There may be no one home in heaven, yet I am moved to express my gratitude. So I bow before my two invented gods, Mother Water and Mistress Sky.
I worship Mother Water for her liquid nurture, her unending welcome. She is the matrix from which we emerged as primitive creatures and to whose breast we return for sustenance. Floating on her waves, we are all one, awash in our Mother.
Mistress Sky I worship for her ineffable beauty. When the sun shines, she adorns herself in intense blue robes, bedecked with white jewelry. As day ends, she throws them off, to slip into a glamorous gown of incandescent colour. She is my adolescent fantasy of luxuriant beauty, the untouchable object of desire.
In such a universe, photography is a remarkable gift, allowing me to see, to capture, to preserve, and to share glories that may evaporate in seconds. Photography is my liturgy of homage, a way to express gratitude.
Children love
Skating To The End Of The World
Timothy Bentley tells true stories of his childhood adventures in the countryside during the 1940s and 50s.
Illustrated with photographs from his childhood, the stories include getting caught in a donkey stampede, raising a dancing raccoon, a first airplane flight from a wilderness lake, almost drowning his water-ski buddy, and preparing a special Christmas gift for grandparents across the ocean.
Children isolated at home can enjoy the adventures by watching 14 video readings by the author, at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqUxlBeXn5jndZkBqrD9gLPB5agLgUAra.
The stories are accompanied by photographs of the author and his family, and the animals in the tales.
True tales from a country childhood
Bentley tells the stories with warmth and gentle humor. The title chapter describes the attraction of an endless frozen river for a determined child.
“I didn’t look back. I just focused on what was ahead, watching the condition of the ice, avoiding the outside of the curves where the fast current sometimes kept the water from freezing. My toes were cramped and cold inside my tight skates. But the exercise was keeping the rest of me comfortably warm. Best of all, I was totally independent.”
Appeals to young people
For children whose experience is limited to city streets, Bentley’s charming tales of a free life in the country are both exotic and inspiring. Printed in a larger font, the book is designed to attract readers from 4 to 14.
Educator Janet Kerman uses the book in her classroom. “Every year I read Skating To The End Of The World to my students, urban kids who are mainly familiar with concrete and traffic. These stories enhance children’s comprehension, and open their minds to new possibilities.”
An ideal holiday gift
The book is an ideal gift for children, available in paperback or Kindle at www.amzn.com/1512178020.
Adults grow their relationships
Lessons In Love
During his decades as a psychotherapist and life coach, Timothy Bentley learned from the best teachers: his clients.
Available as a Kindle ebook, Lessons In Love brings you the wisdom he discovered, in bite-size chunks that can change your life. Read for just two minutes a day, and discover these truths:
You are the best expert on your own life.
You can break the Official Sex Rules, and survive.
You can turn low self-esteem into success and self-assurance.
Three simple rules can help you conquer stress.
Career people work better and last longer by putting family life first.
Even a "hopeless" marriage can come back to life.
Proven techniques can help you avoid power struggles with your children.
Fighting with your mate can lead to a happier relationship.
And you can keep the lust in a long-term love.
In this cheerful, down-to-earth guide, Timothy Bentley demonstrates that healthy relationships can be the most important elements in personal and professional success.
By taking just a couple of minutes a day to read the brief, illustrative, and practical pieces in this book, you can learn a new and vital approach to the problems in your emotional life, and get the most out of your relationships.
Order an instant Kindle download.