It is no secret that I like photographing faces. Eyes, smiles, giggles, looks, emotions, relationships, people…portraits. I almost never take a picture without somebody in it. I have really enjoyed looking at other’s photography of nature, or just their physical surroundings. I just felt I never could take a nice picture of those things. I truly felt like I was not enough of an artist to take scenic pictures that others could find beautiful. I realize I was missing the point. I am an artist simply by taking in God’s creation around me, interpreting it my way, and sharing it with others for His glory. Being an artist truly means allowing yourself to reflect the beauty around you however it moves you most. Practical translation for me? Take photographs for Him. Take photographs that please my heart and seek to please no other viewer besides God. I am an artist for gazing at God’s earthly kingdom and doing my best to show gratitude through the medium of photography. And with spring surrounding me, warmer breezes blowing, I feel Him tugging at my heart to thank him for the flowers and scenery I breathe in day in and day out. The view I take in is breathtakingly,and is meant to be shared. At first I felt lost..taking pictures with no eyes and smiles looking back at me. But just like the cold weather, my insecurities melted away as the flowers romanced me, posing this way and that. With every click of my shutter, I whispered another prayer of thanksgiving for my eyesight. I hope these photographs will fill you with praise for our Divine Artist!
I often feel like this fence post….just sticking out a little ;)
I absolutely adore the daffodils…welcoming Spring and waving to all their admirer’s! My favorite poem is “Daffodils” by William Wordsworth. Too cute not to share with the photographs :)
I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretch'd in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils
And now we are entering into the last week of Lent. Lent is always such a fruitful time of the year for me. I try to invest in silence. Turning off the music in my car, and all around me. It is truly in the silence where I can draw deeper into His sufferings. I have failed time and again at having a Christian attitude towards those I love. I have failed in being a light to draw others to Christ. I let my pride get the best of me.I have failed at Lenten resolutions. I take joy in my miserable failings, though. It was once explained to me that in our failings, we have succeeded. As we fail we see how utterly weak we are, how much we need a Savior. And He loves to save. He loves those who fail repeatedly and finally surrender, realizing their complete need to lean on Him, alone. He is rejoicing when I tell Him I can’t without Him.
Jesus, during this last week of Lent, grant me the grace to meditate on your sacrifice, and to know your love for me. You are holding your arms wide for me, stretched on the cross… grant me to grace to abandon self and run towards your embrace.
I realize there is a lot of writing going on in this supposed photo-blog! I guess sometimes I want to share the inspiration behind photographs, even if it means baring my soul a little. Whenever I write, even writing papers back in college, I always felt a little naked and exposed. So, it is with great vulnerability that I write along with take pictures. By opening my heart..I pray that God will fill it with more of Himself. I hope you enjoyed the photographs!
