The heavens are rich with artistry creativity, and lessons to teach us
When viewed from a ship at sea they are even richer – and vacation provides the time and opportunity to explore and express this beauty. The art is biased of course by the perspective of the observer. AiA finds the shapes and character of “things” related to the body, biology, art and culture of primary interest. The Caribbean heavens explored from a boat contains a wealth of material.
As we started our journey….
I swear I saw Prometheus running down from the heavens !
and then I looked a little closer …
and then put on my shades… and yes twas a powerful athlete running down to earth from the skies and he was carrying something! 
Prometheus is a Greek mythological figure who brought fire to the earth that he stole from Mount Olympus. He was punished by Zeus who chained him to the rocks of Mount Caucasus. In addition an eagle (Zeus himself) punished Prometheus by daily feeds on his liver. The ancients knew of the magical regenerative properties of the liver and the antiseptic qualities of bile. The eagle (Zeus) is later slain by Heracles and Prometheus is given his freedom. He gains strength due the the regenerative powers of the liver (also known by contemporary physicians in the world of hepatology and hepatic surgery).
Talking of animals of the sky? And what about the Scottie dog? What lessons does he have to teach us?
Scottie of the Skye in the Sky
In this image a Scottie dog was found romping in the heavens. The Scottie is an endearing name for the Scottish terrier – aka Aberdeen terrier. It is part of the group of Skye terriers and therefore is fittingly suited for the theme of the wonderful sightings in the sky. The Scottie is one of the terrier breeds that come from Scotland. Other terriers in this group include the Skye, West Highland Terrier, Dandie Dinmont and the Cairn . The Scottie has a characteristic compact and powerful body. The torso and head are rectangular, ears are pointed , eyes are almond shaped, and the beard has long and soft hair. The legs are short but powerful allowing for agility and quick movement. The breed exemplifies “power in a small package” . The confident and independent nature has earned them the nickname “Diehard”. It is extremely territorial. Both President Franklin D Roosevelt and George W Bush owned Scotties. George, the fourth Earl of Dumbarton owned a pack of brave Scottish Terriers, that were named “Diehards”. Dumbartons regiment in the The Royal Scots were fittingly named the “Dumbarton Diehards” Scotty Cramp is a disease in Scottish Terriers that causes muscle spasms resulting in hyperflexion and hyperextension of the legs. It is an inherited recessive trait of the breed. It is caused by a deficiency in serotonin.
1 Real Scottie, 1 in the Sky, and 2 in Dem Bones
In Radiology we look at the neck of the Scottie dog in a condition of the lumbar spine that causes back pain in athletes called spondylolysis. The neck of the Scottie is overlaid in maroon in the image on the right and represents the pars interarticularis which may undergo stress fracture in young athletes (spondylolysis) resulting in one lumbar vertebral body slipping forward on the other (spondylolisthesis). It is one of the causes of back pain in young athletes.
Rain – Good or Bad? –
“Anatomy of Rain in the Sky at Sunrise”
In this image sunrise brings a shower of rain in the east. The sun shining through the dark clouds illuminates other clouds and brings some hope. In the context of the vacationer the rain is a disappointment and means an undesirable day indoors. For the farmer and for mother earth it is a blessing!
The art piece is dominated by falling rain and a rising sun that shines through and illuminates the vista.
and what does that teach us – It all depends on context
Some quotes:
Predicting rain doesn’t count. Building arks does. Warren Buffett
Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby. Langston Hughes
As the day continued – it got grayer and grayer
Anatomy of Rain in the Sky
In this instance the gray skies of rain bring a gloom for some and yes … also a bloom .. of life for others. It is an essential to all biology.
The image shows rain romping from the heavens.
Some Quotes
The best thing one can do when it’s raining is to let it rain. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Gray skies are just clouds passing over. Duke Ellington
The rain began again. It fell heavily, easily, with no meaning or intention but the fulfilment of its own nature, which was to fall and fall. Helen Garner
but things change..time moves on..and
“Time and Tide Wait for No Man”
And the following day – all had changed – the rain had passed and bright orange heavens illuminated the sky a moment before sunrise
Anatomy of the Sky Before Sunrise
Moments before sunrise brings light to the darkness, just before the sun pokes its head from the blanket of the ocean. The sun shining illuminates the sky with an orange optimism in the cloudless sky.
Anatomy of the Sky at the Moment of Sunrise
Anatomy of the Sky 1 Minute after Sunrise
Anatomy of the Sky 3 minutes After Sunrise
Time passes quickly
Quotes
“You can’t stop the future, You can’t rewind the past, The only way to learn the secret…is to press play.” – Jay Asher
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” ― Lao Tzu
As the day progressed – Nirvana – a blue blue sky , and a blue blue ocean – interrupted only by a ruffle of waving white
Blue Sky, Blue Water, and A Ruffle of Waving White
and this also was not for long .. as time passed and ever changing cloud pattern passed before our eyes – containing all sorts of people
… and a surprise artist made his appearance –
Chagall Blessing the Sky
Blessing in the Sky with Overlay
The artist spotted Chagall flying in typical fashion through the heavens of the Caribbean. he had his arms outstretched as if to bless the sky
And by the end of the first day… the clouds rolled in to compete for kingdom of the earthly sky
Anatomy of the Sky as the Sun Starts to Set
The kingdom of the earthly sky is shared by the sun with the clouds as each seeks to dominate. For the sun this is a small battle since its kingdom stretches over the entire solar system. For the clouds this is a major battle since they only rule over the earth. They both play an essential role in preserving life on earth. The sun is constant and dependable. The clouds are transient and fickle. The setting sun descends through the blanket of the clouds, and gives the sky a mysterious, and magical feel.
And the next day… the clouds and the sun shared the spotlight at sunrise
I took a nice cuppa tea, and sat on a chaise – longue to watch the spectacle. To my surprise I saw my knee caps…
“Sunrise View of the Knee Caps”
The art piece expresses a joint experience of my knees and the sun. As I sit on the chaise-longue sipping tea and watching the sunrise with X-ray vision, I share a gaze with the sun. The sun looks at the sunrise view of my knees and I look at its sunrise in the sky. In radiology we use the ‘sunrise view” to evaluate the joint space between the patella and the femur.
As the day progressed the clouds disappeared, and a day moon appeared.
Day Moon
And nighttime came – not a cloud in the sky … blackness descended revealing the light of a crescent moon and its neighbour Venus.
The Moon and Venus in Conversation
and the heavens turned black – and I saw the overshadowed crescent moon talking to Venus… “What are people thinking?- Do they not realise life rules over death? Peace over terror? Why do the leaders of the people not declare this universal truth? It is so clear from where we stand, that there is something going wrong down there….Leaders must not remain silent! “
And after the moon rose my hand rose to tell the moon something…
I Have a Bone to Pick with You .. I said
In this art piece the larger than life bones of the hand reach out into the sky in conversation. Tongue in cheek it wants to share the idea that it has a bone in its wrist that shares a common feature with the moon. The lunate bone is is found in the proximal row of metacarpal bones in the wrist, so named because of its shape. “Luna” is the Latin name for the moon.
and then two more hands with their scaphoids appeared to teach us the last lessons from the Caribbean
Scaphoids That Pass Under the Lunar Night
The art piece shows a night time sky with the X-ray of three hands. The hand on the left and right side of the image have the scaphoid bone of the wrist outlined in color. The scaphoid is so named because of its ship like shape. “Skaphos” means ship in Greek. The middle hand dominates the trio of hands and unrealistically dominates the skyline. The lunate bone is highlighted in the middle hand. It is so named because it is moon shaped. Artistically the scaphoid bone on the right is colored in Irish green since the ring finger carries a claddagh ring -an Irish ring that represents love, loyalty, and friendship. The larger than life delicate fingers of the middle hand reach out to the moon and talks with the moon about their common shapes… small talk in the big picture
From a literary point of view the title “Scaphoids that Pass Under the Lunar Night” infers and invokes the sentiment of Longfellow in “Tales of a Wayside Inn” about the “ships that pass in the night”
“Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing,
Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice, then darkness again and a silence.”
“Ships that pass in the night” speaks of chance meetings that are transitory that come and go and are just part of life that do not result in a meaningful relationship – and in other contexts of two people who almost encounter each other – but do not. In both cases, with a little effort of either party, a connection may have been life changing.
… and these were just a few lessons taught by the Caribbean sky!
