A Fragile World

It’s a very fragile world, she told us

So we walk carefully everywhere we go

And we promised to remember as long as we could.

-Brian Andreas, Storypeople

The BP Gulf of Mexico oil disaster has been front and center on TV, newspapers and radio. The images are beyond heartbreaking – I know my heart breaks daily over this catastrophe. And it’s still happening. When will it stop?

My grandfather instilled in me a respect for nature. He was such a special and patient man – an organic farmer long before it was sexy and chic. We would take walks in the woods of Eastern Pennsylvania, and he would talk about how everything was interdependent and worked in cooperation. These were truly special lessons to be taught. I was so blessed to have this in my childhood. We are care takers of this world and of one another. Sometimes we forget that. But disasters like this remind us that we are all part of a larger, fragile whole.

I Googled “Gulf Coast aid” to try to find a way to help. Sadly, it was difficult to find much. Conversely there were all sorts of links for Haiti aid. One disaster was natural, the other was man made with lots of finger pointing.

As women, artists, and creative souls, we are heartbroken over this situation and its consequences. We are compassionate souls. We are nurturers. We take charge and take responsibility. What we are not is apathetic. We are architects of a better world. We find those small actions we can take toward the positive. We ask, “What can I do to help?”. Several days ago, I discovered a shop on Etsy that was donating all proceeds from sales to Gulf Coast relief efforts. I was elated that I found a way I could do something to help, and I donated a fine art photograph to the cause. The HELP THE GULF COAST shop unites Etsy sellers to bring help to the Gulf Coast. Through our art, and support of other artists, we can offer help. We can’t just sit and watch.

"To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter... to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life. " ~ John Burroughs

More ways to help:

Children can learn how to help.

Make a donation to Audubon to help relief efforts.

Volunteer with Audubon.

Support funding for restoration of the Louisiana coastline.

Buy a bottle of DAWN dish detergent & activate your $1 donation to help.

Make a donation to the Alabama Coastal Foundation.

Join the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Volunteers on FB.

Spread the word that Matters of Trustis collecting hair from salons and dog groomers, and nylons to absorb oil from the spill.

Make a donation to the National Wildlife Federation.

Send a form letter to the President in support of the Gulf Coast & Louisiana coastline. Make a political statement!

If you favor halting off shore oil drilling, you can send this letter from the Sierra Club.

Donate artand handmade to the Help the Gulf Coast Etsy shop.

Buy art from the Help the Gulf Etsy shop.

We are architects of a better world for our children and ourselves. Remember to walk carefully everywhere you go…

 Image and words courtesy of Honorary Sister / Guest Blogger Joy St. Claire of Oh Joy Photography.

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Congratulations to the winners of the Hello Daddy contest:

The Grand Hello goes Life in Eden’s Hello Daddy

And the 2 runners up are Jaye’s shot April Negotiation and Kate Settle’s shot Evening.

Bravo ladies for such stellar Daddy shots!

And thanks to everyone for playing this week. Your shots were all perfect tributes to all the Dads we love. And don’t forget you can still order today for Father’s Day delivery from Hello Canvas. And everything is 25% just for us with the code HELLOSISTERS. Yay!

Perfectly Imperfect Focus

When I first started shooting photography, I wanted perfectly crisp shots that were so focused they made you want to reach out and touch them. This was my goal with every single picture. When I did not achieve this, I felt like I had failed. It is funny how my photography beginnings paralleled my daily life. I wasted so many years trying to live up to this standard of perfection that others had outlined for me. You want to talk about setting yourself up to fail, try living up to other people's standards.

A couple of years ago, I was introduced to the Lensbaby and shooting for me became a new adventure. With the lens being manual, I had to go back to my film shooting roots and set my shutter speed and aperture manually. I admit, I was not a fan of the lens the first day I used it. I could not get my images sharp to save my life and I had become so dependent on using the semi-automatic settings on my camera that I had forgotten how to manually change my settings. Around this same time, I noticed a shift in my life. I had lost my identity, I was not sleeping well, I hated my job and I was still trying to live up to an impossible standard of perfection. I went on a hunt for the perfect hobby, thinking I would "find" myself in one of the five or so I did all at once. It did not work. I was still unhappy.

When I stopped trying to shoot the perfect picture, I started to appreciate the perfect imperfection of the lens. I discovered I loved shooting macro images of flowers. When I stopped trying to be perfect and embraced the simple pleasure of making a photograph, I found myself looking for imperfections in everything around me. It was this letting go of perfection that helped me love myself. Loving myself changed everything for me. I cut myself some slack, stopped apologizing for the person I was and embraced every single imperfect thing about myself.

Over the past year, I have been discovering who I am growing into. I will not lie and say the process has been pain-free. It has been downright painful, but the easiest thing I have been able to do is let go of perfection completely. Only God is perfect. And, if He can love me for who I am, imperfections and all, who am I to not love myself? This simple fact is when everything came into focus for me. Loving yourself...it starts there.

Words and self-portrait (reflection in The Bean, Chicago, IL) courtesy of Honorary Sisters / Guest Blogger Lucrecer Braxton, the woman beyond Art Slam.

Appetite

In the past year I’ve gone from hungry to satiated; in my daily life, my career, my outlook, etc. And now that I am where I am (which is right where I’m supposed to be) I am hungry again. Voracious even. But, swinging the pendulum back, I am totally satisfied with my life as it is. Right now.

A friend and I tried to tackle this idea this past weekend; of having a grateful heart, being totally present and content with the way things are while at the same time craving more.

I know the two ways of being might seem contradictory but I don’t think they have to be. I have recently shared over on the the I am Enough Collaborative, that I have come to the place in my life where I am good with who I am (it still amazes me that after 40 years of trying to internalize that, it can be stated in such a short and sweet sentence). But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to stop dreaming. I’ve got an appetite for living my best life. And yet, in the same breath I know that exactly how things are right now, and who I am is enough, which makes any angst of what ‘could be’ or what desires I have for the future vanish.

In other words, I’m licking my chops looking forward to the future and all the good things that will be stacked on my plate but those things aren’t needed to feed my self-worth. That isn’t the part of me that’s hungry anymore. Therein lies the difference of my past and my present and in turn, my future.

So, do you see the two sides co-existing?  How do you live contented in the present while you dream big for the future and still remain centered?

I think it’s all in how you look at it—is it me or does it always, always come down to perspective?

Everyday Excerpt

Each day I do the dirty work, the effort that attracts no notice but my own, and in this very place I find the ordinary ingredients for genuine fulfillment.

Rising with the sun to sort and stack the dishes, appreciating this simple task as the essential start to a healthy day. Chopping the blemished fruit into breakfast, savoring the taste of my own usefulness. Emptying full hampers without resentment or commentary. Making a marriage from sturdy pots and pans, an enduring masterpiece of mutual forgiveness. Cooking dinner while my daughter plunks the most lovely praise songs from the piano, knowing that my own mother, standing in her own kitchen, once received the same sweet cup of satisfaction from me. Watching my family circle each other in wary regard, wrestle and shout a messy wreck of feelings, seeing them suffer their deep adoration of each other, and leaving it be, well and good and theirs alone. Keeping silent about some things and laughing about most everything.

Loving all of this, and then forgetting to add even that, so full to the brim with this life already.

Excerpted from the book Hand Wash Cold: Care Instructions for an Ordinary Life ©2010 by Karen Maezen Miller. Printed with permission of New World Library, Novato, CA. www.newworldlibrary.com

For a dose of everyday inspiration, listen to Karen Maezen Miller read an extended excerpt from Hand Wash Cold on her blog today.

And please share an image of your own everyday beauty. For some perfect examples from our community visit the One Word Project flickr pool where the word this month is everyday.

Karen is graciously giving away a signed copy of her book for Giveaway May. Leave a comment here between now and Thursday midnight for a chance to win.

Congrats to Aia for winning the signed copy of Hand Wash Cold. Yay!

flower therapy

Outside the window of where I do most of my work there is a rose bush that I look upon everyday. Each year after prunning it slowly grows full of foliage. Green  buds begin to shoot up and slowly crack open revealing impossibly pink petals that eventually burst into amazingly robust roses.

It has become a great joy, watching that rose bush bloom every year. The morning light creeps over the wall behind the bush and delights me with the glow of the morning. And in the last light of the afternoon, sunset skies illuminate my roses with the softness that only evening light can offer.

The whole process is therapeutic for me as the roses grow and bloom, wither and eventually loose thier petals and make room for the next new blossom. I'll never tire of experiencing this complex circle of beauty, color and hope. And I will always take pleasure in capturing it all in photos.

Share today flower therapy from your world. Whether it's from a vase in your home, your yard or a nearby field, capture the wonder of one of Mother Nature's most generous gifts; the flower.