.....speed.........

runners just do it - the run for the finish line even if someone else has reached it first.......

Man has this week flown by....  and appropriately enough week 13's word is SPEED!!!  :)  Be sure and head over to check out Nicole's word this week too!  I have been wanting to take a shot like this for some time now....  not really with my running shoes IN the shot but of the double yellow lines on a stretch of road!!  For some goofy reason I really LOVE those stinkin things....  maybe it's because it reminds me of going somewhere.... road trips....  who knows!!??  I'm just weird like that!  :)

If ya know me at all, you know that I LOVE to run!!!  It's true....  it has (at times) been almost an obsession for me!!  But don't let this shot fool ya.....  I am not a speedy runner!!  Nope... I will never win...  and I am perfectly okay with that!!!  I am slow and steady.... running for the view.... for the clarity that it gives me.... running oddly enough at times is what gets me through the day!!!  Ya see I take care of some serious business while me feet are pounding the pavement....  it is where I sort out the drama in my life.... where I clear my head....  where I talk to God!!!  And all of those things take time.... Kinda guess that I run just like I try to live.... slow and steady....  taking it all in!!  :)   So my shot this week is a symbol of my chosen path in this life....  Not sure where it leads.... but I know that there is NO need for speed!!!  :)

.....romantic.......

I could search my whole life through and through an never find another you

well....  here we are at week 12 already!!!  Can't believe that it is almost MAY!!  This week mine and Nicole's word is ROMANTIC!!  Be sure to head over and check out Nicole's shot for this week too.   Now I took hundreds of shots this week of flowers and such trying to capture romantic in a photo....  and in the process I discovered just what the word romantic really means to me!!  You see....  I think that we girls have this whole "romantic" thing all wrong!!  I think that our expectations of romance or something romantic are unattainable...  and therefore we are always left expecting or hoping for more....  just like I was this week with my photo!!!  :)  Trust me on this girls...  Prince Charming might be real but I promise you that someone still has to wash his underwear!!  :)  So to expect otherwise is creating a standard that can never be met... 

So this all got me to thinking about the romantic moments in my life... and I have discovered that they are NOT the staged dramatic moments...  now don't get me wrong those moments are great.... but they are usually not the romantic moments that I remember the most... Romantic to me is that moment....  in a crowded room.... when our eyes meet and I can feel my heart almost burst!!  Romantic is the flower that he picks for me off of the "fruit loop" tree as he pulls up in the driveway...  it is the Coke Icee that he brings me when he runs out to get gas for the lawn mower.... it is the text message that he sends me that simply says "I sure do love you"....  it is him reaching down to hold my hand while we are waiting to check out at the grocery store....  it is a day trip to the beach two weeks after surgery because he KNEW that the beach was my healing place!!!  Simple little romantic moments the FILL MY LIFE!!!  EVERYDAY!!!  So the story behind my shot this week is just another little romantic thing that we do....  for as long as I can remember, everywhere that we go.... we bring back a rock and we write on the bottom of the rock the date and where its from!!!  We have rocks from all over the place (I even have one from Iraq!!) now these rocks would have absolutely no worth or meaning to anyone else....  but to me, each one holds a reminder of a special moment.... a memory.... of the day we biked to Ringing Rock.... the time that we sat on Little Big Top in Gettysburg watching the sunset....  the weekend that we spent hiking the Catskills....  endless memories captured in a glass jar full of romantic little rocks!!!  So I really don't need a Prince Charming.... I don't need Richard Gere to drive up in a limo and rescue me "Pretty Woman" style.... nope.... I just need a guy who will fill my days with endless laughter, unconditional love and simple little romantic moments!!! 

....monochromatic.....

  “Our lives at times seem a study in contrast... love & hate, birth & death, right & wrong... everything seen in absolutes of black & white. Too often we are not aware that it is the shades of grey that add depth & meaning to the starkness of those extremes.”  Ansel Adams

This week mine and Nicole's word is MONOCHROMATIC.... holy cow what a word!!!  :)  Be sure to click on over and check out Nicole's shot this week too!!  Now before I even get started let me clear up a few things....  YES these are SHOT GLASSES....  and NO they are NOT full of tequila!!  :)  My purpose for shooting these glasses was to capture a natural monochromatic shot....  I didn't want to just desaturate my shot in Photoshop...  I wanted to capture the monochrome that exists naturally...  the extreme contrast of light and dark... and more importantly the GREY'S that are present in our lives!

Now the FIRST thing I think of when I think of monochromatic photo's is Ansel Adams.....  his work takes my breath away...  but the above quote is the thing that I love most from him!!!  It is one of my favorites!!  I think I love it so much because THAT is how I see life!!!  Too often we feel that we should only live our lives in the "black and white"....  the place that is obvious....  clearly defined....  safe!!  The place where a strong sense of right or wrong, good or bad exists!!  The place where EXPECTATION lives.... At least in our minds any way!  :)  What a HUGE injustice we do to ourselves.... trying to live in only the black and white!  I believe that we need to open our eyes and see the GREY that exists....  the places, thoughts, beliefs that are not so clearly defined!!  The grey area is where we learn and grow!!  It is the unexpected and unforeseen....  the place where things don't turn out like we had hoped....  the place where things go wrong!!  It is sometimes a scary and difficult place because it forces us to look outside of ourselves.... to see things differently....  to DEAL with the HARD things in life!!!  And while I would prefer to live my life only in the black and white (and who wouldn't...  things are a whole lot easier there!!)....  I believe that God really intends for us to live in the shades of grey....  to realize daily that this life is a test....  it is not meant to be absolute or predictable!   I can't tell you what my path in this life is supposed to look like.... no one really knows that about themselves!!  We can plan.... we can hope.... we can dream.... But the truth is this.... you get what you get!  Simple as that....  And our disappointment in life comes from believing that we can have some sorta control over that!!!  I'm not saying that you just need to wander aimlessly through this life with no purpose or desire....  I'm saying that you should take what you get (cause ya really have NO CONTROL over what ya get!!) and turn THAT into what you need!! To me....  THAT is living in the shades of grey!!!  THAT is the place where you give your life depth and meaning....  and THAT is the place that I want to live MY life!!! 

...scattered.....

Life: a cycle. A series of events, meetings, and departures. Friends discovered, others lost, Precious time, wastes away. Big droplet tears are shed for yesterday, but are dried in time for tomorrow, until all that remain are scattered memories of  a happy yesteryear

.Well....  here we are at week 10 and mine and Nicole's word for this week is SCATTERED...  be sure to head over and check out Nicole's interpretation of this weeks word too.  Scattered....  I like that word!!  :)  Thought of tons of things that I could photograph...  um...  my laundry room....  scattered with clothes in various stages from dirty to ready to put away...  my dining room table scattered with 2 months worth of mail...  yep...  at least 2 months worth!!  yikes!!!  And boy if I could get a shot of all the scattered randomness that is in my head!!!  WOW!!  But I decided to hit ya with a little symbolism this week folks!!  :)  Now if you truly know me, you know that I believe EVERYTHING (good or bad) that happens to us in this life, happens for a reason....  I believe in finding value in all people...  no matter how hard that is sometimes!!  :)  I am a firm believer that the people that I encounter, the circumstances of each new day...  the hand that I am dealt so to speak....  are all part of my journey in this life....  So, with all of that being said... when I reflect... when I look back on my life up to this point...  I see scattered memories of people, places and situations that have helped me to become the person that I am today....  Some of those precious memories have been captured in the photographs scattered on the floor in my shot.....  and some of them are only a snapshot in my mind....  but all of them are important...  they litter my path!!  :)  They remind me where I have been and where I NEED to be....   Scattered moments of lessons learned....  scattered memories of dear friends and family near and far who have touched my life....  So my shot this week is a symbol of my journey....  scattered behind me are the people and places that have helped me to be the person that I am....  and before me....  well before me is a well lit path...  a path filled only with His light.....   and endless possibility!   :)

.....evening take 2 a lesson in patience..........

sometimes the best things in life are worth the wait.........

So here ya have it....  my original thought!!!  Now those of you that know me know that I am a freak about getting things done and put in their place!  I'm the kind of person who feels like I'm late if I'm not 10 minutes early.... and I have the patience of a 2 year old!!  I'm crazy like that....  I know this about myself.... and those who love me seem to have some special way of overlooking my neurotic behavior!!  :)  The real kicker in all of this is that TODAY is the "post by" day for our weekly shot!  Now I have to tell ya that I was fretful about not being able to "find" a critter for my jar....  THAT was really the whole point of my shot!!!  So for 6 days...  I searched for a bug!!!  The weather sucked....  it was cooler that usual and very windy....  and rainy!  Which apparently are not the best conditions for bug hunting!!  And yes....  all my neighbors are talking about that crazy lady on the corner who is outside looking for bugs in her yard every day!!!  :)  WHATEVER!!  :)  So....  Friday night I decided to just shoot the empty jar.... and that is what I did!  I liked the shot okay.... but hey.... it was missing a BUG!!!  :( 

Soooo.....  on the seventh day.....  God taught me patience!!!!  yep...  it was a beautiful day!!!  We took the dogs for a walk and there were butterflies EVERYWHERE!!!  Heck, Rick even had a ladybug land on him!  :)  (that'll bring ya good luck baby!!!)  Lizards were all over the place....  big fat bee's buzzing around all of the spring blooms!!!  And guess what....  Mrs Impatient here had already posted her shot!!!  Oh well.... I thought.... and I was just gonna leave it at that....  UNTIL.... I was sitting on the back step and a butterfly actually landed on my arm!!!  So, I ran into the house, grabbed my little butterfly net and took off after him!  Took me awhile but I caught him....  just as the sky filled with the fiery orange glow of the sun setting....  and as I took this shot....  all I could think of was this little hymn that I used to sing when I was a little girl....

Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength
They shall mount up with wings like the eagles
They shall run and not be weary
They shall walk and not faint.
Teach me Lord, teach me Lord to wait.

So today I got my shot....  and a reminder of the importance of being patient....  whether I'm waiting on a butterfly or something else in my life..... God's plan is ALWAYS better than mine!!  :)  I just have to slow down and wait to see what He has in store for me!!  :)



.....evening.............

....wishing for a lightning bug............

Well...  here we are at week 9 of mine and Nicole's 52 weeks!!!  Can't believe that it is April already....  our word for this week is "evening"!!  Be sure and head over and check out Nicole's shot for this week!!  I am always amazed and inspired by her work!! 

I have to admit that I really struggled with this word....  not because I didn't know what I wanted to shoot...  but because I couldn't find it!!!  :)  I may have to revisit this word again in the summer!!!  You see.... evening is my favorite time of the day....  has been for as long as I can remember!  As an adult....  evening time is family time.... the time when you finally get to come home from a long day spent with basically strangers to the people that you love....  it's the time of the day when everyone and everything settles down....  even the sun!!  :)  But my true love for this time of the day began a long time ago when I was just a little kid!!  Now, I would spend almost the entire day outside playing when I was a kid....  riding my bike.... building forts....  wading through the creek looking for tadpoles or crawdaddy's!!  And then it would happen....  that distant call of your name....  "Shelly.... dinner!!!!"  Ya didn't really want to stop playing but you knew that the faster that you ate....  the sooner you would be able to head back outside!!!  Now the rule around my house was... "you have to come in when the street lights come on!"....  so I would gobble up my dinner and fly out the door....  into the evening air.... which always seemed to feel a little crisper than any other time of the day and I have a very clear recollection of the feeling of the cool damp evening grass on my bare feet....    Evenings were different....  like a whole new world.... filled with a different kind of fun!  I have always thought that it was sooo strange how the world seemed more awake that ever before.... right before bedtime!!!  :)  Evenings were filled with endless games of hide n go seek...  and a frantic attempt to catch something....  some kind of treasure to call you own before those street lights came on!!!  Frogs.... moths... crickets.... grasshoppers....  and lightening bugs (they were my favorite)....  the evening was full of em....  and I was always on the hunt for something to put in the Mason jar (or mayonnaise jar...heehee) beside my bed!!!  Now when I was a kid I didn't have a bug net....  nope.... it was just me....  chasing down my new found pet....  in that golden little hour between light and dark...  right before God has the final word of the day in the form of a breathtaking sunset!!!  Man... what I wouldn't give to have just a moment of that innocent carefree life back!!!! 

So my shot this week is pretty darn lacking in the artistic value department.....  and I have to admit that I did try to catch something (butterfly... moth... ladybug... even a frog!!!) to put in my jar...  with absolutely NO LUCK :(   but it is a symbol of something that can't really be captured in a photo......  it is a symbol of a treasured childhood....  memories that will carry me through to the end of my days.....  and a reminder to myself that although I am a whole lot older now....  your never really too old to step out into the evening air and chase lightening bugs!!!  :)