This post and these flowers are dedicated to two caretakers, three dying mothers, and two dying fathers. They all take comfort in some of my photos, which have startled, bewildered, and challenged me.

The gurus I read all say there is no point worrying about the future since it is unpredictable, but I suggest people focus on the now.

I have found this accurate since nothing in my life was predictable or imaginable, even ten years ago. I never imagined Maria or moving my writing entirely to my blog. I never imagined taking pictures of flowers; I never imagined that anyone would love my flower photos so much that they would ask me to keep posting them because they are watching their parents die or that their mothers and fathers asked to see my flower photos every day as they lie dying in homes and hospice centers preparing to leave the world.

I understand that the need is not for me but for the flowers, which seem to have powerful, calming, and soothing qualities. In recent months, I’ve received requests almost daily for the children of sick and older parents or grandparents to keep my flower photos coming. It helps them, and often, it allows the dying as well.

I have one thing I need to say: I am no priest, rabbi, prophet, or healer. These photos come from deep inside of me, and I have no pretense of being a wise man with answers about life. I am a pilgrim seeking my own truth and meaning.  I have no pretensions beyond that. Yet, as a hospice volunteer, I know the value and beautiful sadness of helping people leave the world.

And if my flowers help, bless them. I never imagined that. I dedicated them to the last fives messages I’ve received about their power to comfort.

This was the latest message I got; it was this morning:

“Jon,
Thank you so much for your excellent blog and all the beautiful pictures you share. My mom is dying, and reading your blog and seeing all your beautiful pictures is helping me make it through each day in this new chapter, Charlane”

I’ve wondered how to respond to these moving responses and humbling requests for more. I can’t answer each one individually and wouldn’t wish to; I need more time and the desire to do that full-time.

People ask me to keep posting the photos as often as possible. I post them daily, a clear and powerful way to use my flowers in a valuable, even precious, way. I am humbled beyond words. As a hospice volunteer and spiritual pilgrim,  there is nothing more meaningful than comforting people while watching their loved ones decline or die. And also brings relief and hope to the sick around them.

Flowers are not morbid or depressing for me; I am learning how important they are in my emotional life. Something appears in the photos themselves. They certainly light me up, and I am beginning to understand—and to use—my flowers in that way.

“Please keep posting those flowers as often as possible,” Grant wrote me the other day, “I show them to my father every day; he is in hospice and near the end. He always asks me to tape them to the wall above his bed; he looks at them every morning when he wakes up. He says it keeps him peaceful and unafraid. Me too, “Grant, “Please keep them coming.

What is one of the happiest flowers in my experience? Sunflowers: Sunflowers are bright yellow and cheerful. The color yellow is said to make people feel happy and spontaneous. I always smile when I see one.

Of course, I’ll keep taking photos, deeply affected by the requests. I won’t approach pictures only this way; I love experimenting with and smiling with them. But I will be grateful every day that they are bringing a lot of comfort to many people. I can’t wait to see what is inside there for me. Maria says a lot is coming.

I don’t take my flower photos consciously. I see a color and hit the shutter.

I’m happy people use them this way; I’m also glad that people enjoy the colors; they do not need a happy or deep meaning. I will keep doing it just as I’ve been, spontaneously and experimentally. I always need to find out where I’m going. I have a lot to learn, and humility is everything. The minute I think I’ve got it, I will lose it. My favorite words are “I don’t know,” words lost on Facebook or social media. If I lose them, I’m done.

As some of you know, I’ve begun studying color philosophy. I am surprised to see that I love the same colors in flowers that the researchers recommend for the depressed or fearful, terminally ill, or dying. I see they have meaning beyond me.

These flowers help me to be calm, at peace, and without fear. I never imagined a flower could do this, but I see it daily. When choosing flower photos for someone who is dying, they say to opt for images of soft, light-colored flowers like white lilies, white roses, pink roses, or delicate blooms like baby’s breath as they symbolize peace, serenity, and purity, which can be comforting during a difficult time; I would avoid overly vibrant or bright colors that might feel jarring.

I never imagined that I might be taking flower photographs that might touch people in this way. Life is full of crisis and mystery. I will never again be afraid of the future, and I am still determining what it might bring. I close my eyes and jump.