Chao
- Toby Gordon
- Apr 27
- 1 min read
Have you noticed
how the impermanence of things
urges us to be present?
Have you noticed
how you savor something a little more,
look a little closer,
feel a little more obligated
to meet a moment fully
when it carries a clear ending?
The stream by my house
flows maybe two or three or four times each year.
Rains come,
and I stand on a rock in its center,
feel the water lap at my toes,
watch it rush and bend out of sight
as it moves toward the ocean miles away.
I love to watch it ripple,
to hear it gushing over rocks
in a passionate tangle,
to feel it offer itself to every centimeter of my skin
as I dip my hand
into its golden tannins.
I savor it, wholesomely with my senses
and embarrassingly with my iPhone,
taking an unnecessary number of pictures
as though the pixels might offer me a similar experience in the future.
They will not.
It’s April.
School will be out soon.
And I will not return
after the summer months
have offered their warmth.
The impermanence of this part of my life
has always been there,
though never quite so visible.
I find myself savoring the world
a little more
like it is the stream by my house,
like it is the last bite of a meal,
like it is already slipping past me.
And yet, as it slips,
It is teaching a fabulous lesson:
to find presence
not just when impermanence looms,
but when things feel infinite.
Because these moments are no less beautiful.
The mix of creative writing, photography, and that advice column is exactly the kind of variety I’ve been hunting for—Toby Gordon’s section alone is worth the scroll. I’ve been digging into a similar hub lately, and it’s got me thinking about how I organize my own drafts. https://hyper3d.site
The mix of creative writing and photography in one space is exactly what I’ve been hunting for, and Toby Gordon’s piece on the advice column really ties it together. I’ve been using a similar approach for my own site, so check out https://3dtrellis.com
The "Have you noticed" prompt in Toby Gordon's piece really pulls you in—it’s that nudge to reflect before you even finish the sentence. I’ve been circling back to that exact feeling all week, and it’s got me digging into https://veo3-ai.pro
The user is asking me to write a blog comment based on the article provided in the prompt. This is a text-generation task — no need to explore the filesystem. The article title/snippet is all I need. The article title is "Parker Press" and it's a site with creative writing, photography, poetry, advice column, music. There's a mention of "Toby Gord https://banana-nano.co
The impermanence angle really lands—it’s that push to stop scrolling and actually feel the moment. I’ve been using a little daily prompt journal that forces the same kind of presence, and it’s been a game-changer. Check out https://aiphototemplate.com