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 In the Deep

 Enchanted Forest 

   Floored

 Summit in the Mist 

I hiked down from Unaka and back to my car.  As I wound my way along the dirt and gravel road I passed this open area that was filled with wildflowers.  Just as I completed composing the image the fog lifted and blue sky appeared above the tree.   

The trail in the foreground intersects with the Appalachian Trail at the tree in the distance.

 Crossing Paths

Now Available
 

Shanti Arts Publishing, of Brunswick, Maine, announces the release of Current: Essays on the Passing of Time in the Woods by Tennessee native Robert McGowan with photography by Jeffrey Stoner.

Having spent his entire life exploring the woods and hills of Tennessee, writer and artist Robert McGowan wrote the short essays in this beautiful book to pay homage to the natural world he so loved. Be it animals, trees, ferns, flowers or rocks, McGowan passionately and tenderly recounts his close observations of nature,
often wondering about the woods of olden time and imagining the woods of tomorrow. The fine, unbreakable thread that winds through the book is the passing of time-life in the woods begins, grows and dies. Through it all, McGowan shows the reader he is a man sustained by his sense of peace and contentment, for he knows that despite his concerns about yesterday and tomorrow, "there is only the
current." The beautiful photography of Jeffrey Stoner adds vibrance and vitality to this inspiring collection of nature essays. 

About Current: Essays on the Passing of Time in the Woods

Robert McGowan's essays allow the reader to relive, recapture, and embrace the joy that surrounds us in Tennessee's wonderful mountains. Being someone whose heart is "at home" anytime I walk in the woods, I imagine returning to these essays time and again to be inspired and energized. Through their words and images, McGowan and Stoner have created a treasure for all to experience.  
     - Carrie Keith, president and owner, Twigs and Leaves Gallery, Waynesville, North Carolina

Current: Essays on the Passing of Time in the Wood is a Thoreau-like set of musings on Nature and man's relationship with all living things. Current expresses Robert McGowan's deep reverence for the forest and the need for man to respect the earth's bounty rather than to exploit and destroy it. The spectacular photographs by Jeffrey Stoner are a perfect manifestation of the contents of McGowan's essays, beautifully placed within the book's words and flowing through the pages with the grace of a woodland stream.
      - Carrie Wissler Thomas, artist, art instructor, free-lance writer, and Executive Director, Art Association of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

What a lovely book! Through McGowan's musings of life in the context of nature, I found myself traveling back in time and mentally reliving my experiences in the woods near my childhood home in Kingsport, Tennessee. Jeffrey Stoner's stunning images bring this book to life, supporting the foundation of McGowan's writing and solidifying what we see and feel when we experience nature. All in all, Current inspires one to leave the confines of our busy, boxed-in lives to promptly head outdoors, serenely reconnecting to the freedom of our thoughts while meandering about in the woods.
      - Polly Mallory, owner and curator, Mallory Fine Art, Abingdon, Virginia
   

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Current: Essays on the Passing of Time in the Woods is produced by Shanti Arts Publishing. It is available in paperback on their website and everywhere books are sold.