cool, refreshing clarity

Last year around this time I was fortunate enough to attend Karen Maezen Miller's Mother's Plunge. The day was full of all those fundamentally important elements that stood as symbols for how I want to live my life; reminders to breathe, trusted friends, beautiful surroundings, meandering down paths and around gardens, wise words, my camera, yoga, good food, gentle guidance, discoveries, epiphanies, new friends and more reminders to breathe. It was one of those kinds of days that I won't soon forget. Memories I carry in my back pocket and pull out when I need them most.

One of the many beauties of having a friend like Karen is that no matter the subject, no matter the means of communication between us, she always manages to slip in exactly what I need to hear. Through a simple comment on my Facebook page or blog, a phone call or an email, she's armed with that knowing and offers it lovingly and generously.

The other day a simple line in her email awakened me; ...that's what wisdom is: clarity.

A simple statement. A reminder. A nudge. A splash of refreshing truth. My One Little Word this year is 'deliberate'. So, I ask, did I think I could be deliberate without clarity? I think I've inadvertently tried to avoid it. But, now I have it in writing and thanks to one Zen Momma, I've heard the message, loud and clear.

Any wake up calls for you lately? Have you been sent a message to heed? A mission to accomplish? A lake to plunge into? Do tell.

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I encourage you to experience the Mother's Plunge for yourself if your whereabouts allow (no, you really don't have to be a mother to attend, I promise). Check out the soon-coming dates of the Plunge that might just be in your neck of the woods. A day with Karen is a perfect way to spend a day, let me tell you.

And for more insights and wisdom, Karen's latest book Hand Wash Cold is available for pre-order! Just listen to this excerpt for a little splash.

Celebrating Gratitude

photo by Childplay (Tiffani)

Happy November (already). October was so illuminating! Thank you for participating in the One Word Project and bringing to light all the photographic wonders that the month had to offer.

Alas, it’s time we shift from the frolic of Halloween to the festivities that November boasts; family, friends and gratitude. What a great and giving season! 

Isn’t it perfect then that our word for November is gratitude? We think so!

We are giddy about it actually as we are partnering up with Epic Change and getting into the giving spirit with the ever-exciting ultimate give-back Tweetsgiving. By getting involved here in our One Word Project and submitting your images of gratitude you are helping us get the word outabout Tweetsgiving. And be sure to join the communityover there to see about other ways you can get involved. The whole wonderful scoop on Tweetsgiving can be found on their site.

And if you can believe it, there is so much more to it this month! Remember our recent write up about the adorably awesome and affordable photo books by Memolio? We thought you might. Well, the fantastic folks there are totally into making a difference too and are sponsoring this month’s One Word Project! Totally Sweet!

Here’s the plan: You submit your images of gratitude and we will work with Memolio to create a Gratitude Book featuring a collection YOUR images from our One Word Project Flickr Pool. The book will then go on sale through their site and all the proceeds from book sales will go to Tweetsgiving. Talk about full-circle awesomeness all around! To have your image(s) considered for the book you’ve got to tag them accordingly. The tags to use are OWP, November, Gratitude, Memolio AND Tweetsgiving.

And to add a finishing touch on the excitement of this project, I personally want to challenge you to create your very own Gratitude book at Memolio to share with all of us sisters and with your friends and family. Once you pop over to the site and create your book, your creation will live at Memoliowhere you can then share the link to the book with those you love (like us). Of course having your book printed as a tangible reminder of gratitude is great and and giving them as gifts is yet another fab idea! We simply cannot wait to see what you’re grateful for. Once links to books come in we’ll gather them up and do a Gratitude Book Round Up just in time for Tweetsgiving and Thanksgiving.

Each Sunday this month we’ll be giving away gift certificates for free Memolio books! It is all about giving after all.

Tweetsgiving, Memolio, Thanksgiving and an abundance of gratitude! What a month!

So...let's just dive in. I'm grateful for all of YOU. What are you grateful for?

Fridays Featured Resource - Week of Life Project

Just over a year ago we shared our enthusiasm for all things Ali Edwards, including her photo project called A Week In the Life. Love it! Thanks Ali for the inspiration!

Now, imagine that concept on a global scale. Enter the Week of Life Project: A unique internet medium for all citizens of the globe. Over at their site they invite everyone to take part in what they call the largest documentary project of all time! Sweet.  We love collaborative and community projects so much and we thought this one was a dandy! Check out all the images that people have shared from their life. Neat stuff!

The project reminds me of a more concentrated version of the ever popular 365 but waaaaaaay less of a time commitment. Week of Life calls for 7 days captured in 9 photographs in each day. 63 photographs that make up a small documentary about one’s life, which can help to create a large documentary about the world. I like that idea. So, with that in mind, let's see something from your week this week. Shed a little light into your world, and ours.

Photo above captured an evening in our life, as shot by my 11-year-old daughter.

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For those of you who are actively engaged in the 365 project, we want to hear from you! We're planning another post full of inspiration and ideas for starting and sticking with the ambitious and coveted 365. Something along the lines of the one Stephanie shared and the one that followed. Share with us your thoughts so we can include them in our 365 inspiration round up!

up up and away

In celebration of my birthday my husband took me and our girls out to a local park for an evening of live music and casual dining under the stars. Knowing our destination was called The Great Park I figured it would be...great although I really had no idea what to expect. But as we drove down a long deserted road I had never traveled before I began to feel like a child again; giddy with the anticipation of a new adventure.

We slowly came around the corner toward the transformed Marine Corps Air Station and there it was: the big orange balloon. The whole family squealed in delight. I shot the image above from the passenger window on our way into the park. Needless to say, the evening was enchanting. And best of all, it was practically in our own backyard. Who knew?

Have you ever felt like a child again with something so simple? A time or a place that took you from your everyday life and lifted you like a balloon in frivolous flight? Remember that feeling, revel in it and share it with us today.

Home is Where the Heart is

There's no place like home. - Dorothy

Home is where we hang our hats. It’s where we gather around the dinner with family and friends. Home is a warm cozy blanket in the winter and the breeze blowing through and open window in the summer. It’s is sun-ripened fruit in the fruit bowl and hot soup in the kettle. Home is popcorn and ice cream sundaes. Home is children, pets, and partners. Home is a good book and a vase of fresh flowers. And on a great day, home is nice natural light flooding in for the perfect portraits of the people we love and place we love to be.

Home is where we feel as ease; where we let down our guards, where we love without reservation, and hope without limits. Home is where we choose to live and perhaps even more, home is where we come from, where we’re rooted, where we grow.

Us Shutter Sisters as well as the fine folks of Aaron Brothers are eager to see your interpretations of this month’s One Word Project’s theme home. They are holding a photography and art contest that begs the question Show Us Your America which for many of us is home so it just seemed like a perfect fit. Although the contest is specifically about Your America*, we hope the word home will open your hearts and minds to infinite possibilities. The theme is up for interpretation. Enlighten us.

They say home is where the heart is. And I know it’s where my heart is. I’m sure the same goes for many of you too. It’s reflected in the many sincere and sacred images you have been willing to share with us in our Flickr Pool. Offering us a glimpse into your life says a lot about this community and I for one feel at home here, with all of you.

We’re looking so forward to celebrating August with a word as rich and meaningful as home. I can only imagine what kind of delights will await us over in the One Word Project Flickr Pool. And like months past, we have a special place here to feature some of the photos that are shared so be sure to visit to OWP blog daily to see some of them showcased.

*For US sisters, please read the rule of eligibility carefully to be sure you’re in one of the eligible states for the contest. For those of you international sisters, don’t fret, join us in the OWP and show us your home in our Flickr pool too, no matter the continent or the miles between us, home is home and we want you to share it.

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A special thanks to Aaron Bros and the Show Us Your America contest for sponsoring this months OWP. For more about what fantastic products and services Aaron Brothers’ stores provide, check out their website or better yet, pop into one of their many stores. You will LOVE it, I promise.

And for Show Us Your America Photography and Art Contest information, go visit the website and pick a shot from your arsenal that creatively shows them your America...your home.