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El Mar
El Mar 2017 | Oil + Acrylic | 5′ X 6′ | © Derek Doods
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Surrounded By Light
Surrounded By Light | Canon 6D | Sayulita, Mexico 2016 | © Derek Dodds
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The Valley of Weathered Hearts
I left myself at the shores of frustration. In search of my true salvation. Driven by the love of elation. Shadowed by my fear and consternation. No time left for mental masturbation. Full throttled vibration. Understated, unrated, undercooked maturation. Destiny is my creation. Done with—someones else’s verbalization. Enriched by inspiration. Taking it down with perspiration. Pillars of spiritualization. Dripping from the tears of experimentation. Rhythm-less rhymes of orchestration. The conductor has left the podium—the hum of yesteryear echoes in the valley of weathered hearts and vagabond dreams . . . A small note shows itself,alone and nakedin ‘self’ immolation. D. Paris 10/2015 tribute to my Mother’s death in 2015
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A Sinaloan Road Trip: Why Surfers Risk Everything for Waves
Everyone said I shouldn’t go. “It’s dangerous down there right now,” my friends and family told me. In fact, just a few kilometers from where we stay, two Australian surfers disappeared and lost their lives in a horrific story of injustice and brutality. According to reports, they were pulled over by assassins dressed in police uniforms and shot. The assailants lit the Ozzy van on fire and the bodies were burned—hopefully not still alive. The authorities had to do a DNA analysis of the remains to identify the surfers. This happened at the end of 2015, just as I was sending my deposit in for my first surf trip to…
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Pulsating Pensivity
broken raindrops of existence kindled by flames of eternity grasped by the throat of time dripping memories from my glass of wine bloodstained youth of– dreamless dreams running in circles of– meanless means twisting away on the cosmic vine
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Are You Leading A Secondhand Life?
I was living a secondhand life for many years, like an old worn-out t-shirt hanging on the thrift store rack, waiting for someone to take me home so that I could live in their dream world and not mine. The umbilical cord of life is longer than ever before, and in many cases, it is connected to an empty bag of broken dreams and someone else’s goals. Life is too short to live a secondhand life. It’s such an honor to be born, to be healthy, and to live in a country where you can be anything you want to be. One of my favorite books was written by Victor…
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Ode To Life
ode to emotion and desireblinded by my oceanic dream-like imagination reborn to myself, in myselfre-birthing my energetic ability to march, dance, and sing ode to standing up to a new way of living yes—an ode to myself to the lion’s roarmy roar to the heartfelt understanding that life in not overthat life has just begunand is always re-beginning ode to the fire insideto the sound of silence ode to becoming meode to me ode to the peeling of my soulto the layers of illusion that are falling away ode to the soft, gentle naturethat is my corethat is the core of all beings ode to the council of beingthat guide…
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Mar & The Guitar
Mar & The Guitar | Canon 6D | Ojai, California 2016 | © Derek Dodds
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It Only Takes One Wave To Change You Forever: J-bay South Africa
Traveling isn’t always easy: different beds, snoring friends, babies crying, funky food—’for the last time, vegetarian does not mean I eat chicken.’ Having been cursed in countries south of the border for decades, you would think I would have learned by now as I run out to the reception with a hopeful expression on my face, ‘I just drank the tap water, is that cool?’ I was feeling awful for some reason, and it wasn’t the water. I picked up some gnarly African flu, for four days I was praying to trade it out for anything Montezuma style. Illness knocked me out like Mike Tyson at a drunken bar mitzvah.…
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Truth’s Dance
i met this guy in Mexico years backand he had this huge tattoo on his armhe was powerfulInsightfullike a shaman i instantly felt he was my brothersoul-type-brotherand i asked him what veritas meant he said truthit hit me hardit struck me like a boltright in the center of my being because i knew that what he had on his armwas the meaning of lifewas the meaning of my lifeeven though most of my life was a lieswallowing what had been passed down to me from my familyassimilating what ‘they’ taught me in all those hours of ‘education’how to be a ‘good humana good ‘citizen’a good ’employee’ “I pledge allegiance to…
