What do you see??

So yesterday it was my great fortune to take part in an online photography master class taught by Jim Jordan - world renowned fashion photographer Jim Jordan. Really??? Holy shit! Me?? Actually, he opened up this class to the public, and I have no idea how many people attended the class, but from his comments I do know that there were people attending from all over the world.  

It was the introductory class for a year long series of classes, and I found it inspiring.  He told his story, and it speaks to how you can take a set of horrible circumstances, turn them around, and live an incredible life in spite of what the world might tell you, AND in spite of those little voices in your head telling you that "you can't" or "you're not qualified" or "you're not worthy." So what does that have to do with photography? Everything. He lives an authentic life, and that is what comes through in his work.

Part of the message yesterday was to take a different perspective, to see things that others don't see. To see light in a different way, to use it and play with it. To capture moments because they change so quickly.

Sooooo, then what happens last night? I get some spectacular examples of light when an unexpected storm rolls through....

One of the suggestions from the class was to take something completely ordinary, something you probably look right at every day without really seeing it, and take a photo and show the beauty of the object.  So, what do I see this morning staring back at me? My teapot. My pretty teal teapot, shining at me and showing its beautiful reflection in the stove top...

The cat sitting on my lap....

Got up too late to go hiking this morning, and besides, with the weather the way it is, I wouldn't want to be out on a trail when one of these rolls in...

But I needed to get out of the apartment, so I decided to take a 20 minute walk down a nearby street. Uh huh. 45 minutes later, a hot, sweaty, very thirsty me came back to my nice air conditioned apartment. On my short walk, everywhere I looked, I saw something that caught my eye, so of course, my trusty phone and I went to work....need to go back another time (when it's not so frickin hot) with my actual camera.....here are just a few of the, oh I don't know, 50 shots I took:

A splash of red catches my eye - a shy Cardinal that flew away when I tried to get closer  (yup, next time I need my camera)

Then a splash of pink catches my eye - there is a long, boring wall around the neighborhood, however this flower wanted to be seen

Then the beautiful Palo Verde - don't ya love the way the branches just seem to be curving and dancing to their own tune?

 Light and shadow showing the texture of the pods that have fallen

Then I see something sparkly and think what the heck? Get closer and see that the light is shining on the old dried sap and it was sparkling like diamonds

Always love sunlight through the trees....

My connection is with nature - it is part of my being, and I love sharing my perspective through the camera lens. This is another "self portrait" taken a few weeks ago - me communicating with a tree....

What do you see around you? What would you like to capture? Again, it all changes so quickly.....

Me? Get up Early??

Been a busy month with ups and downs (fortunately more ups!), and just realized I had not written a post for June - but hey! today is still June!! Woohoo! Just under the wire to meet my commitment to myself to write at least once a month....

Hot here in Arizona (duh, it's summer...) so not spending as much time as I'd like out in nature or out with my camera. When the low is 77 degrees, you have to get out pretty early to enjoy the desert rather than survive the desert - and I'd much rather enjoy. The problem? Anyone who knows me knows that getting up early is not something that comes naturally to me. Love me a lazy morning of sleeping in on the weekends.

Soooooo, here's the interesting thing. I was on my computer one night a few weeks ago and was going through and sorting some photos. As I looked at my hiking photos, my heart began to ache. It had been weeks since I'd been on a hike, and man, did it hit me that I needed to get back outside. The problem? The excuse that it was too hot and that I'd have to be out there really early. 

Kept looking at the photos, looking at my camera sitting on the shelf, felt how strongly I was being pulled, and decided I was being an idiot. So, the past two Sundays I have rolled out of bed, thrown on my "play clothes", some sunscreen and a hat, packed water and a snack, and have gone to my happy place at Cave Creek Regional Park. 

I have had some incredible experiences connecting with nature on these early morning adventures, and I plan to continue doing it. 

I came back from those hikes hot, sweaty, covered in dust, and invigorated rather than tired. Looked at the photos I had taken and smiled to myself. Thought about the exchanges I had had with the plants and animals and felt fulfilled.

My two cents? Take a look at where you are shutting yourself off from what calls you. Really take a look. Why? What is the excuse for delaying doing something that you would really enjoy?


I've got a whole pile of excuses I am working through that I am learning to change and make new choices. Easy? No, but it gets easier as you see your life start to change.



On my hike last Sunday, I focused my camera on the texture and shapes of things - here are some of my favorites:

And, by the way, you can see/feel a lot in an old "dead" tree

My meditation buddy.....

My happy place.....

Listening to a 5-year-old.....

So would you take advice from a 5-year-old?  You might want to consider it. I was doing some energy work with my friend Lynn yesterday, and she suggested I ask my 5-year-old self:  What would you like to do today? Hmmmm....

Been pretty caught up in learning my new job (which after being at my old job for 12 years, it's been an interesting experience getting my brain to fire up and learn a lot of new stuff) and in continuing to build my new life here in Arizona.

How often do we relax and just have fun for the heck of it? I've been discovering things here that I enjoy, and yet, I still default back into practicality and needing a reason to do something, you know, it has to make sense.  

The other day outside of the grocery story, I saw a woman around my age come out of the store with a full basket, and when she got to the asphalt, she pushed the cart really fast, jumped on the back and rode it all the way to her car. It looked like so much fun, and I was jealous of her.

So yesterday afternoon, I ask my 5-year-old self:  "What would you like to do?"

The answer I get is:  "Let's go swing!!!"

WTF?? Swing? Like on a swingset??  "Yes!!" Um, sure. Do they even have swingsets around here?? And it's the afternoon - we'd get 3rd degree burns from a sitting on a swing and grabbing the chains. "But it would be so much fun!!"  Well, I do have to admit, yes, it would be fun. So I get out my phone and look up parks with swings - and, wouldn't you know, there is a park about a half mile from my apartment with swings. OK. But it's still too hot. "When can we go??" Well, if we go tomorrow early enough in the day.....

What else do you want to do? "Let's get ice cream!!" So my adult self starts thinking about maybe getting a hot fudge sundae....mmmmm...  But, my 5-year-old self would have had a nickle cone from Thrifty's (yes, it cost a nickel, ten cents for a double scoop). Soooo.....off to the store we go.  

While in the store "Oh! Can we get crayons and a color book, too???"  Seriously?? "Yes!!" Um, OK - off to the appropriate aisle...."Oh! They have bubbles too!!!"

Do you know how much fun I had yesterday evening coloring, blowing bubbles off of my patio, and eating an ice cream cone???  

Then this morning, I roll out of bed, put on my "play clothes" (remember when you had play clothes?), and head over to the park. "YAY!!!" Do you know how much fun I had swinging? I think I actually giggled. Fortunately there wasn't anyone else in the park until I was ready to leave and a van that was full of kids pulled up.

I thanked my 5-year-old self for reminding how much fun it was to have fun! 

Then I decided I'd head over to my favorite hiking place to walk my trail before it got too hot. Instead of a focused hike, it ended up being a meandering walk seeing things that sometimes I would have walked past, and instead looked at things as if I were showing a 5-year-old the wonders of the trail and the surrounding nature. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

We tend to take everything so seriously. Yes, serious things happen, but most of what we fret about doesn't need to be such a concern.

Go have some fun today, tomorrow, the next day....just for the fun of it!!! Make it simple and easy. Find something that makes you giggle! I highly recommend it.

Sign, Sign, Everywhere A Sign....

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

Five Man Electrical Band



If you don't know my story - a couple of years ago I took a leap of faith and left a 30+ year relationship, my home and most of my belongings, however I stayed in the comfort of my location (my beach!!), my friends and my job.

This second leap of faith has been much faithier. Packed up the cat and everything I owned into my Honda Fit (yes, everything I owned fit in a Honda Fit) and left my community, my ocean, my friends and my job to start something entirely new in the beauty of the desert.

The challenges rolled in. One of them was that I needed a source of income as the funds I had set aside for starting over were being rapidly depleted. Really questioned my sanity for taking the second leap. 

So why the reference to the song at the start of this post? Throughout this whole process, the more I pay attention and look around me, the more signs I see/hear that help keep me moving forward.

You know when you wake up with part of a song stuck in your head? It's only part of the song and it just keeps looping through your brain?? Super irritating, right?? Yeah, that happens to me a lot, and the only way to get rid of the song is to go to YouTube and listen to the whole damn thing. At some point a couple years ago, I realized the lyrics were actually speaking to me. Not the whole song necessarily, but typically one line would jump out and be exactly the message I needed to hear.  

I am no longer irritated when a song pops into my head and won't go away - instead I can't wait until I can listen and find the message. Sometimes it's fun and sometimes it's profound.

(Of course, when its Bohemian Rhapsody - maybe you just need to listen to some awesome classic rock and/or take a road trip....)

When you open up your awareness, signs come on license plates, billboards, in part of an overheard conversation, or the dialog in a movie....and sometimes a sermon.

The last few weeks I attended my outdoor "church" while it was still cool enough here in the desert to do so. Last night I decided I would go to traditional church this morning, but then I had a restless night, didn't sleep well for whatever reason, and ended up sleeping in late. Spent some time trying to convince myself I would just go next week, but there was a niggling feeling that I needed to go. I look at the clock - I only have 30 minutes. But I really feel like I should go. OK - throw on some clothes, hair in a pony tail, put on little bit of make up so I don't scare people, and jump in the car - arrive just in time.

The sermon was written for me.  

Passage today was the parable of the master handing out the talents to his servants. The prelude was "I Can See Clearly Now."

Back to my reference above about needing a source of income. After running the ridiculous gauntlet called job hunting, I was able to find a good administrative assistant/customer service job with some great people. I'm learning a new industry, but the types of tasks are well within the boundaries of what I have been doing for years.

OK, so what does that have to do with the message of the sermon? 

Message today was that we have been given many talents and abilities, and we usually have a calling of how they can be put to use. It is actually our responsibility to develop and share our talents. Follow our heart, look for the signs. Be inspired, be an example, and help others to find their inspiration.

I took a job that, while challenging because I'm learning new ways of doing things, it still is squarely in my wheelhouse and comfort zone. I am thankful and grateful for the opportunity, however, there is this part of me that isn't quite satisfied.

The person who packed up her life and drove across the desert to make a drastic change did not do that just so she could do what she was doing before.

I put reflexology and energy work off to the side because I needed a job for income and security, it takes a long time to build a practice, etc., etc., and I put all of my effort in the direction of finding an office job. Another message in the sermon: Sometimes in our fear we hide/bury our true talents in our search for security. Hmmmm..... 

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It's gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright) Sun-Shiny day.

Johnny Nash

Time to focus on the talents I really want to develop and share. Time to focus on the work I am inspired to do. Time to find a way to thrive rather than settle.
I love to help people relax, lighten up, and reconnect. I love being in nature. It is time to get my ass in gear to fill the time outside of work doing what I really feel called to do and see where it goes.

Turn left....recalculating.....U-turn at the next intersection.....recalculating....


The universe is always trying to get your attention. Open your awareness - follow your intuition or urges to do things. Sometimes a message was written specifically for you. 

Have fun with finding the messages - I know I am....

Thought you'd enjoy a couple of signs I pass on my way to church....no Toto, we are definitely NOT in Laguna Beach anymore....

 

Yes, There Will Be Horseshit....

So when I want to get out and get some fresh air, oh, wait, I'm surrounded by fresh air here.....So when I want to get out and get some exercise, I love to go to Cave Creek Regional Park. There is a combination of sections of 4 connecting trails that create a really cool 3 mile loop. Wait, did you say 3 MILES?? Yes, yes I did. Did I start with that? Hell no, worked up to it, and the terrain is still a nice challenge. I can't tell you the great sense of accomplishment the first time I did it and didn't die. (There is another longer, harder loop that I'm working up to, but may not get that one done before summer hits and it's 400 degrees here...)

Now, when you first saw the picture above, what did you think? Where did your eyes go first? The beautiful day? The way the trees work together to make an arch to walk through? Nope, I'm betting your eyes went straight to the pile of horseshit. And you may or may not have seen that there are some additional piles further along the path.

I took this photo a couple weeks ago because it's perfect. 

We plan our path, we create our path, we envision our path - and then as we are walking it, AAAHHHH!!!! There's a big pile of crap!!! And here's what we do:

We look at it
We analyze it
We look at it more closely
We wonder how it got there
We get even closer and focus on it more
We stand in the middle of it
We kick it around and then wonder why it's on our shoes
We tell everyone about it
We ask everyone what they think about it
We cry about it
Then we wonder why we can't get out of it

Or - we see it, panic, and in trying to avoid it, we end up in the rocks and cactus and rattlesnakes.  

OR......

Did you notice how much of the path is NOT covered in crap? We could just acknowledge that crap happens and then WALK AROUND IT. Get the lesson and move on. Focus on everything else in the photo that is NOT crap. Sheesh. Not sure why this is so hard for us to do, but I am certainly guilty of all of the above crappy focus.  

I have managed to walk the trails at the park many times and not step in the horseshit even once. I have tripped over rocks because I was looking around and enjoying the view, but I have always paid attention to the piles of crap and then moved around them. Time to do that in daily life.....

Have a great day my friends, and focus on the great, beautiful parts of your path....

From Lessons in Laguna to Adventures in Arizona

A few of my friends have been asking me when I was going to start blogging again. After moving and ending my previous blog Lessons from Laguna December , earlier this year I was considering what direction to take with a new blog and what the focus would be - something more than me just rambling on.  Some ideas were coming through, but needed to have a focus and I wasn't coming up with anything that would compel me to write, and, who would want to take the time to read it??

After a start to my year that was not at all what I expected and way more challenging than I had imagined, blogging was set aside and I hadn't really thought about it. But, after comments from my friends nudging me to start writing again, a couple of ideas have been floating around in the back of my mind. Then this morning I wake up and my brain starts writing even though I still am not sure of what my message is....so, here goes....

Change: the act or instance of making or becoming different. An alteration or modification. A new or refreshingly different experience.

Transformation: a thorough or dramatic change in form or appearance, the act or process of changing completely.

Metamorphosis: a change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one, by natural or supernatural means. A process of profound and radical change, implies a basic change of character and little or no resemblance with the past configuration or structure.

I think we all want to make changes, and some of us want to transform, but let me just say, metamorphosis is not something for the fainthearted.....

Who just up and leaves their job, their family and friends, and the place they have lived their whole life? Someone who is brave? Or someone who is insane? Trust me, during this experience I have asked myself that a lot.

A  few years ago, I started making changes that led to being strong enough to leave a long relationship that needed to end and to start over. During my time in Laguna I went through a transformation that led me to start expressing who I truly am and to look at my future in a different way. Sooooo, now we hit the metamorphosis stage - leave everything behind and start over at a whole new level. 

Really? Are you sure about that???

Yes! Wait, no.  Um, yes.  Oh good grief, who knows - all I know is that I took another leap of faith, and when you do that you encounter situations that will test you and your faith.  

We are here to grow and evolve AND HAVE FUN. I had lost the focus on fun for a little while, however, I have had my spiritual butt kicked, and, with the help of my friends, I am getting back on track.

I'll do my best to share my growing, evolving experiences here in Arizona, and how I'm finding the fun amidst the challenges. If you want to grow and evolve, you are going to have curve balls, sharp left turns and the slamming on of brakes. Grow and evolve anyway.  

We'll see how this blog (and my adventures) develop, and hopefully you will enjoy joining me on my journey from the comfort of your own home.

Have a great day!

Lynette

New path to new adventures...