Take Your Time.....

This morning, as most mornings go - it seems like a rat race from the time we get up until the time we go to bed.  You typically see the hurried behaviors in peoples driving, you have a destination to get to and someone is driving less than the posted speed.  You go to the store and there is inevitably a slow clerk.  It follows you wherever you go.

 Sometimes I find that I feel the need to "rush", even when I have no time constraints.  It has become a natural part of life and the simple way of the world.When I am not in a hurry or rushing through my day, I find that I get very irritated at those who are because I feel like they are rushing me.  Why must we be this way?  Why is it that we feel the need to accomplish so much in a day that we make ourselves crazy? 

The best time for me is when I am out and about behind the lens.  I slow down completely, it puts me in a serene and peaceful state of mind.  I allow myself to be vulnerable to what is around me.  My eyes see things that I would normally pass by.  I have a bigger sense of picking things out of the big picture and focusing on details.  It makes me feel that I have a great calmness.

Even if it is just for today, attempt slowing down, achieve the peaceful state of mind, notice the little things and see if it makes a difference in your life.  Take your time!

Priscilla

Are you beautiful???

There are many sayings about beauty, of course the one that always comes to mind is that "beauty is only skin deep"......of course this is true for some and probably more than I would like to admit in my life. 

Beauty is something deeper to me.  It is the root of who you are, how you treat others, the respect you have for fragile things in life and  the child like nature that we all have.  It is the way we love, the time we take and our actions toward everything in life. 

It is our gratitude, the reflection we see of life, our consideration for the beauty our Creator gives us.  It is becoming what we dream to be, helping others , being sensitive and kind.  It is caring, loving and giving back.  It is selfless, calm and nondestructive.  It is honest,  trustworthy and loyal.  It is supportive, wise and vibrant. 

Beauty is  more than our outer image.  It is beyond what we see in the mirror each day.  It is a grouping of all the wonderful things we have lived through, learned and overcome.  It is a deepness within us that only we can create and pass on to others.

Are you beautiful................

Priscilla

Adoration = Intense Love

Adoration to me is being able to love something so deeply that you think about it constantly, you live it, you breathe it, you dream about it and have a deep rooted passion for it.  It is part of who you are and why you are here, it runs through your veins, it makes you tick and is engrained in every letter in your name.   To me.....that is intense love.   Some people find it in art, while others find it in sports, music, etc.

When you are able to open your mind and heart to the adoration of another, it allows you to be a part of that love.  And to see that for what it is, is one of the most remarkable things I have ever experienced.

One person whose adoration I share is a horse whisperer named Buck Brannaman.  I first learned of "Buck" from the movie The Horse Whisperer, which was modeled after him and I also watched his documentary - Buck.  His philosophy is amazing.  His technique is gentle, but effective.  His spirit is scarred, but beautiful.  Through his experiences in life and the burdens he bared,  within him grew a desire to turn it around, it became his gift of intense love. The man can do anything with a horse and the horses will do anything for him.  He is sensitive to them.  He understands them.  They are a part of him.

I was able to be a part of the adoration of another person through my love for photography.  I was able to meet a man who is a teacher of dogs.  He says that he is a teacher/coach and not a trainer, he is very humble, but if I were to label him, I would say he is definitely a  dog whisperer.  In the process of watching him and listening to his story, I could see the likeness between he and Buck.  Using  the wreckage of the past as a bridge to cross over to something better.  He has patience, understanding, empathy, motivation, love and compassion for these dogs.  He coaches them and along side  of them, he coaches their owners.  He teaches them how to have a relationship.  How to understand one another and how to love life together. 

I was lucky enough to get to freeze a few of these moments by capturing photos of these wonderful beings doing what they love almost effortlessly.  You can see and feel the adoration the dogs have for being taught as much as you can see the adoration their teacher has for teaching them. 

I witnessed a relationship between one of the dogs and his owner that brought tears to my eyes. The man is elderly, has cerebral palsy, has a very hard time physically and even has difficulty speaking. This dog assists him in so much of what he does, but gives him a priceless gift daily - because just his presence makes it possible for him to fish, hunt and enjoy a quality of life that would be next to impossible if he were alone.   Seeing the love the dog had for his owner and how much the owner loved him back, being able to see the dogs motivation to act on command and not looking at it as work, but as a labor of love.  It truly spoke volumes without a sound. 

I was once told by someone whom I loved dearly,  that my Creator gives me situations and experiences in my life so that I may find the "teaching" in it.  I thought I was going to be taking photos of retrievers, learning how to become a better action photographer, as it turns out, it wasn't about that at all.  This wonderful experience has opened my eyes to many things.  I have learned we can develop from our hardships and create something beautiful from it.  I believe it is there for all of us who choose to tap into it.  It is a way to balance life and to learn the true meaning of ADORATION.

Priscilla

"If you got a taste of it.....

if you got a taste of what I'm talking about, 
you couldn't get enough of it,

 you would rather do that than eat.
  You may spend your whole life chasing that 
and that's possible.

But it's a good thing to chase." 
 

~Buck Brannaman

"Ranger"

BELIEVE........

There is a truth and innocence that is experienced  when we believe in something with all of our heart. I have been given the opportunity to  share this youthful emotion, because of two little girls that simply believed in me.

My two daughters became very intrigued by fairies after they watched A Fairy Tale.  Their belief and inspiration seemed to become strengthened through the desire to be a part of something magical.   The two of them decided to build a fairy garden much like the girls in A Fairy Tale did. 

The two of them became very focused and determined to have a magical place for their fairies to come........and step by step, they soon had built a  beautiful little fairy garden that continues to flourish.  I must say that their fairy garden is quite inviting and is lit with lanterns and dragonflies at night. Rocks with words like grow, wish and believe surround the floral blooms. They have a special love for ladybugs in the garden and even have a bridge named ladybug crossing.

Maurelle is the fairy who  lives in our fairy garden.  She is a moon fairy and brings nightfall to our world.  After all, every fairy has a talent that provides us with something  magical.  The girls got a little inquisitive and left a letter full of questions in the fairy garden mailbox.  A few days later, they received a response.....from Maurelle.  Each day they check the garden for activity and to see if any visitors have arrived to spend  some time, such as the other day we had a caterpillar visiting for a bit.  We only see slight signs of our fairy, we watch for new things she adds to the fairy garden, oh and of course we know that she  has been there when there is glitter in the outhouse :)

I want this to be a teaching to my children and part of it is a learning experience for myself as well.  How to believe in something you cannot see teaches us to have faith and unconditional love, which in turn gives us security.   The fact is, when children feel secure  and know that you will always be there for them, they flourish.  When your child knows they are loved and will be loved no matter what mistakes are made, they will not be afraid to spread their wings and fly.  This enchanting world my children have built keeps my heart happy.  Their excitement is captivating and magnetic.  It produces wonder and gives faith. 

It makes it possible to share their kindred spirit because I simply believe!

Priscilla

Letting Go and Letting God

It finally makes sense to me how each and every thing that happens to us during this journey of life, happens to put us in another place, experience or situation.  Sometimes it is to teach us something.  We are responsible for finding the teaching in it.  Understanding that when the change occurs is difficult, sometimes impossible to understand.  When it comes to love and relationships, I just thought I wasn't good at it and I wasn't good enough.
 
At the tender age of 18, I was engaged and ended up left standing at the alter, so to speak. One week before the planned marriage, my fiancé eloped with his high school sweetheart.  I did not understand why something so tragic would happen to me.  That sort of thing was only heard of on T.V. but it was my life.  Now I see that it was a lesson of trust.  I learned about the value of trust and how important it is. 
 
Years later I found love and married someone who I felt was the perfect companion for me.  Everything about us just seemed to piece together just right.  We spent many years together, 12 to be exact.  We were young and full of life and it seemed as though we were beating the odds.  During a very difficult time our relationship went off track somehow.  When it came time to be truly loyal and unwavering, once again I was abandoned.   I learned the value of loyalty and being strong for one another no matter what the situation.
 
Moving forward I quickly established a relationship that gave me my firstborn daughter.   I learned what integrity and dignity are and how someone can rob you of all of it.  I went through a very challenging time at the end of it all which taught me the value of my own inner strength.
 
I decided that I needed to let go and let God.  I wasn't making the right choices.  I put all of my focus on myself and my daughter and stopped looking for love.  I prayed that God would put the right person in my life.  He answered me faithfully and gave me exactly what I needed and I had another beautiful baby girl. Six years ago I met the person I was meant to spend my life with, it just wasn't on my time.  I feel that the experiences I went through grounded me for this relationship so that I could see what it was like to have trust, loyalty & dignity and to know that they were 100% real.
 
This past week I have been blessed beyond words.  I have been shown what it is to truly be loved unconditionally and to be truly happy.  It is often hard to look back at all of those experiences, places and situations and realize that it was all  part of the plan.  It was all necessary to get me where I am today.  I am exactly where I am supposed to be......... All because I finally let go!

Priscilla

Gratitude

It is a very big word and for a long time, I am not sure I really knew what it meant to be truly grateful.  Since this is the time of year that we often think of "giving thanks", I thought it would be a good topic.

I practice each day to have gratitude for 5 things in my life.  It can be simple or complex and I often mix the two.  I learned this practice at a very important time in my life and I recently began doing it again.

I feel that with the hustle of the daily grind, busy life and hectic schedules, it is easy to just forget to have gratitude.  I find that often some are ungrateful and find there is nothing to be grateful for.   A wise man once told me if you can feel your heart beating.....you have something to be grateful for.

 I began this blog because Motherhood often Overloaded me Much of the time.  (M.O.M.) I am not saying that I don't still become "overloaded". But, I am grateful to have my daughters in my life and to truly be present for their growing up.  I feel that children are gifts that are only from God and that I wouldn't have been picked to be their Mom, if I wasn't worthy of their goodness.

My Mother told me things about Motherhood that made no sense at all until I had my children and by then she had left this world.  Her words were wise and ring true in every sense.  One of those things she told me were that "children teach you how to truly love".  For this I am grateful.  I feel that "true love" today and there is no other way to feel it, than to be a MOM. 

 

To all you Mother's out there..........you  are loved!

Priscilla

 

 

 

 

FREEDOM

Yesterday was a celebration to many.  A time of year when you think of BBQ, outdoors, family & fireworks.  I guess there are many words we could use to describe the 4th of July, but for me, yesterday would be described as "freedom".

After reflecting on the day as a whole, I discovered the meaning  "freedom" had for me yesterday.  It really didn't involve the holiday per say, but a more personal reflection that goes somewhat deeper.

It is often hard for me to not allow myself to be affected by the way someone else behaves, thinks,  talks, and reacts, when there is negativity involved.  I always begin with an attempt to not be sucked in by the forces, but honestly, more often than not, I fail at that attempt.

Yesterday was a day that I just wasn't going allow it to happen and part of that reason was because it was the 4th of July.  My girls were excited about the little things we had planned to do and were looking forward to a happy day filled with fun and excitement.  I realized in order to make it fun and exciting for them, I couldn't cloud my mind with this negativity that was so freely floating around.  I had to be free.

Destined to have a  great day out, I programmed my mind to not accept these things and to allow myself to have "freedom".  Freedom to me was not to be bonded by someone else's feelings and thoughts.  There is no connection and there is no value in that for me.  It is so simply stated, but much harder to do.  I am aware that I have my own choices and I am in control of my own emotions.  So, in the end, I am at fault if I allow others to affect me. 

The day consisted of BBQ, snow cones, the park, Frisbee, ice-cream, naps, laughter & smiles, happiness,  FIREWORKS  and the end of the day was the best  part when I realized I had FREEDOM - in more than one sense of the word!


Priscilla