Photography and Spirituality

Some 200 blips ago - that's when I picked up photography after not touching a decent camera for almost 30 years. As someone who grew up in a deeply religious household, photography has also become a spiritual exercise for me. Heightened awareness, a renewed vision of beauty, the relativity of perspective - these are all things that the Desert Fathers have described as experiences of prayer and meditation. 
I am tremendously grateful for what photography has given me in such a brief period of time. I have come to peace with a past so full of conflict - just in time for a trip that will take me right back to where I came from. I dare say that, without photography, I wouldn't be boarding that plane tomorrow. 
But that's not what I originally planned to write about today. I wanted to share some thoughts about Experimental Photography and how it changed or influenced my "ordinary" photography; how last week's pictures of the "children of the highway" would have been quite different without my playing around with Experimental Photography; how these experiments have deepened my awareness for the potential of every subject and have taught me to see beyond the obvious.
But talking about spirituality: Experimental Photography also has a spiritual dimension. If you'd want to sum it up in a formula, you could say:
"Ordinary" photography relates to experimental photography as spirituality relates to mysticism.

Today's blip:
Pinhole of our cat Ella + wall texture.
As an extra, the original pinhole shot without the overlay. I love both versions.