"The days are long, but the years are short." -- Gretchen Rubin
I love that quote--but I sort of hate it, too. It's such a bracing reminder of how sneaky time can be, especially when it comes to children. You look up from your cereal bowl one morning and your "babies"--who, coincidentally, were both 6 pounds, 9 ounces when they were born--are now 7 and 11 years old and spout out words like "pathetically" and "unappetizing" (not together). When did that happen? Time is quite the rascal!
I remember collapsing in tears the first time I had to weed out the baby clothes that no longer fit my son. I put most of the clothes into storage boxes because I just couldn't part with them yet. With the years, I've gotten MUCH better at parting with the kids' outgrown clothes (fortunately, because I need to do it about every six months), but I still catch myself sometimes, wistfully looking at my children and seeing them as they were (wee little ones!), and as they are now (far less wee).
Being mindful is one of my ongoing struggles. It's so easy to get distracted, to lose sight of what's truly important. I know this will sound funny coming from a blogger, but I have a love/hate relationship with the internet. This is a business that I enjoy, but left to my own (distracting) devices, I could probably grind the blogging gears 'til 3 a.m. on a daily basis. (With great restraint, I don't.)
Photography makes me be more mindful because it literally lets me stop time for a split-second. And then I have digital proof that the moment happened--bonus! It also helps me re-focus, quite literally, on the things people I love.
It's with these sentiments in mind that I've created my newest photography e-course: The Charm of Children: How to Take Better Photos of Babies and Kids. I hope you'll join me on this journey of mindfully cherishing our little ones--capturing their beauty, their silliness, their cuddles--before they're not so little anymore. It's not just for parents and grandparents, but for aunts, uncles, godparents, cousins--anybody with lovable little ones buzzing about.
This course in a nutshell:
No fancy camera is required. (You can even use the camera on your phone.)
Yes, you can have a full-time job (which includes parenting!) and still take this course.
You'll get an email with the daily lesson, which you can do (or not do!) at your own pace.
You can post your photographs in our private classroom on Facebook, and get (positive) feedback from me and your fellow students (usually from all over the world, which is a fringe benefit--students in my previous e-courses have haled from all over America, Canada, England, and Australia).
At the end of the course, I'll send you a personal evaluation to help you continue your photographic journey with your children.
With busy parents in mind, this is my shortest photography e-course--just 7 days. (Monday, April 27 - Sunday, May 3, 2015)
Because this is a brand-new course, I'm offering an Early Bird discount ($15 off) for two weeks instead of one, through Sunday, 4/12/15, so I hope you won't delay enrolling if this course resonates with you. Tempus fugit and all that jazz...
Back in January, I had the pleasure of bringing you along on a Hawaiian adventure, courtesy of one of my nearest and dearest friends, Michael Graziano, in a post called Picture-Perfect Postcards from Hawaii. (If you missed it, check it out!) After Michael left Hawaii, heheaded off ona six-week solo backpacking tour of New Zealand. He's been kind enough to let me share with you here the second leg of his trip. (Hang on to your hats! His photos are going to blow you away--and just might cause you to book a very long flight!)
While I can't wait to catch up with Michael again in New York, I'm really going to miss his updates from abroad. Strangely enough, even though he was on the other side of the globe, I felt closer to him than ever. I think you'll understand why, after you read his heartfelt and often funny commentaries on his travels.
The following quotes are Michael's updates from Facebook, and all of the photographs in this post are his, taken with his iPhone. (All text and photos were used with his generous permission, of course!)
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February 5, 2015: "First sunset in New Zealand in Piha outside Auckland. I'm a bit more discombobulated than I expected, adjusting to a new country, even though we speak the same language."
February 8, 2015: "People in New Zealand are so NICE. In comparison, I feel like such a cranky New Yorker. And Auckland is so clean. The trains smell like a sea breeze."
February 9, 2015: "Had an amazing time hiking the coast near Piha and Karekare Beach [above]. This is where my long-time favorite Neil Finn of Crowded House lives and creates some gorgeous music. Neil, why did you not invite me in for tea?"
February 17, 2015: "Just finished a five-day group tour from Auckland to Wellington. What was I thinking? I hate group travel. The sights were gorgeous. The people were out of a sit-com. I'll be happy not to arrive at the National Parks at the exact same time as three other tour buses."
February 20, 2015: "I depart New Zealand's North Island today for the South Island, which I am told is even more spectacular. Exciting!"
February 21, 2015: "I had such an unusual time flying to the South Island. First I had a long chat with my Cambodian van driver. He was a Vietnam War vet and was held as a POW for over 10 years. Surprisingly not bitter and in favor of that war. Then there was absolutely no security at the Wellington airport. No bag check. No taking off of shoes. No scanner. Nothin'. The pilot checked us in herself and there were three passengers in a six-seat plane. After a flight over gorgeous mountains and coast, we helped her push the plane into its hangar. Then she became the car rental agent and kindly got me my car without hounding me for extra insurance. I love New Zealand."
February 26, 2015: "Many of the people I've befriended over the last five months are young enough to be my children. And yet we connect. We are looking for the same answer to different questions. They are traveling to discover what they will become in the world. I am traveling to discover what in the world became of me."
February 27, 2015: "Just finished staying a couple of nights in a cozy little wooden cabin on the coast of Golden Bay. It had an outdoor kitchen and a compost toilet with a million-dollar view. It was a former Buddhist retreat and I was the only guest. I was able to watch this morning's sunrise while tucked under the covers."
"I am loving taking long solitary walks on the Golden Bay beaches with their dramatic tides and empty space."
March 3, 2015: "This is the closest I have gotten to snow this year. The Franz Josef Glacier [above]. Having lived most of my life on the east coast [of the U.S.], I thought I would miss winter and the change of seasons during my travels in Hawaii and New Zealand. But I don't miss them one bit. Not at all."
March 5, 2015:"I felt like I fell down Alice's rabbit hole today while hiking the Kepler Track. Mushrooms everywhere in the forest!"
March 8, 2015: "When I woke up this morning, it was 46 degrees in Te Anau and 50 degrees in NYC. The first time this winter it has been warmer there than here. Cheer up, eastern seaboard. Spring is coming!"
March 8, 2015:"Fiordland [above]. Actually I feel it should be FIORDLAND! First place I've been where the photos just can't capture the majesty."
March 10, 2015: "Much of my soundtrack here in New Zealand has been Crowded House, New Zealand's most famous band and one of my all-time favorites. I listen to 'All I Ask' from their 1991 'Woodface' album over and over. It's like I am in junior high."
All I ask is to live each moment Free from the last Take the road forgotten Don't leave me here Oh, please let me stray Far from familiar things All I ask is to live each moment
-- Neil Finn
March 11, 2015: "I am staying in a small cabin on a sheep farm on the Banks Peninsula for the rest of the week. This is my back yard [above]."
March 13, 2015: "I am going to get a bit mystical here. Ever since arriving in Hawaii six months ago, I've been absorbed in taking photos. This surprised me as I've never been interested in photography before. I last took photos with an Instamatic in 1985. And I had an iPhone for over five years before I ever used the camera on it. I was taking the photos of the evening sky below when it hit me that it was my elementary school art teacher, Miss Jankura, speaking to me. I took my first photograph with her when we made cameras out of oatmeal boxes in third grade. And she developed the photography program at my high school after I graduated so I was never able to take her class. She died from cancer without ever telling me that she was sick or that I was in her will. The money she left me allowed me to take this six-month adventure. I have felt watched over by her the entire trip. And the photos have been a way to say goodbye and thank you. Her spirit and imagination are in each of them."
March 14, 2015: "Today I am leaving the sheep behind and heading to Northland. I don't think the sheep ever warmed to me but they sure are fun to take photos of when they don't run away."
March 17, 2015: "Since I got to New Zealand, I've mostly taken landscape photos trying to capture the grandeur of the environment. Here are a few close-up pics of more humble things that caught my eye."
Shell of a sea urchin washed ashore
"This is a jellyfish lying on a black sand beach. I thought the colors were beautiful together and it looked like something from a 50's sci-fi flick."
March 21, 2015: "I've had many insightful readings shared during my travels, but the one below, which I heard in January at one of Kalani's Monday Ohana meetings, has the most resonance for me personally."
In many shamanic societies, if you came to a medicine person complaining of being disheartened, dispirited or depressed, they would ask one of four questions:
When did you stop singing?
When did you stop dancing?
When did you stop being enchanted by stories?
When did you stop finding comfort in the sweet territory of silence?
Where we have stopped dancing, singing, being enchanted by stories or finding comfort in silence is where we have experienced the loss of soul. -- Gabrielle Roth
March 23, 2015: "All journeys come to an end and mine is no exception. After six months away, I head back to NYC later this week. I am so happy to have seen many beautiful things and met many beautiful beings. This will be my final trip post as I am going to be quiet while I settle back into city life and see what comes next. Thanks to all who have followed me. The 'likes' and comments were always appreciated. I felt like I had a caravan of travelers with me."
Okay, how AMAZING was that?! Do you have a favorite shot? Let me know in the comment section! (Thanks again, Michael. I'm so grateful we've been friends for thirty-four years and counting!)
I gobbled up Anne Lamott's book, Help, Thanks, Wow, in one sitting today. It's a short book, yes, but she's just that kind of writer--the kind where you feel like a close friend is speaking to you--a wise, funny, and sarcastic friend who can artfully describe life and all of its messy bits.
My children (ages 7 and 11) asked me if the book would be good for them to read. "Well... there's a lot of dying in it," I said. They shook their heads in unison and went back to their respective books about wizards and fairies.
I recently read Lamott's book Small Victories: Spotting Improbable Moments of Grace and there's a lot of dying in that book, too--pets, dear friends. But somehow, neither book is depressing. They're both funny, largely because they're truthful, and I had those little moments of self-recognition at least once per page. And even though both books deal with difficult experiences, Lamott also writes about "that occasional gorgeous shock." (Her phrase; I love it.)
As a photographer, I'm always looking for "the occasional gorgeous shock." The "shock" part is the best--when I'm looking through the lens, focusing on one thing, and something completely unexpected pops up. That's what happened with this dragonfly, above. I was focusing on the flowers with my macro lens, when I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was a little dragonfly who seemed to be smiling right at me! He posed for one shot before flutter-buzzing away.
One of my ongoing goals in life is to really keep track of the occasional gorgeous shocks--to notice them, fully appreciate them, and be grateful for them. Especially the day-to-day beautiful things that we sometimes take for granted, but then catch ourselves noticing, and almost pinch ourselves, thinking, "WOW! Such beauty, right in front of me!"
When I looked up from the last page of the book today, there was my dog, Delilah, sleeping on the couch beside me, beautiful and serene, completely unaware of just how shockingly gorgeous an animal she is, her chestnut-golden fur catching the sunlight streaming through the window. And I petted her velvety ears, thanking her just for being her gorgeous doggy self.
How 'bout you? What have you seen lately that's shocked you with its sheer gorgeousness? I'd love to hear about it!
P.S. Big announcement coming next week--stay tuned!
Even if you're not a U.S. history buff, I'm betting you know about Abraham Lincoln's humble beginnings in a log cabin. So you might be surprised to hear that his son, Robert Todd Lincoln, owned a magnificent 24-room house built on 412 sprawling acres in Manchester, Vermont. It's called Hildene, and I had the pleasure of visiting it last month.
If you've been reading this blog for a while (thank you!), then you already know from my post about Edith Wharton's house that I'm in HEAVEN if I'm allowed to roam around a turn-of-the-century home all by myself, to take pictures at leisure. And just like at Edith Wharton's house, I had free range to roam and snap at the Lincoln house. During the winter months, you can take a self-guided tour of Hildene. There are gracious staff members on the premises to introduce you to the property and answer any questions, but basically, you're on your own. (Just the way I like it!)
Robert Todd Lincoln, the only child of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln to survive to adulthood, had this Georgian Revival mansion built in 1905 and it was the private summer home of Lincoln descendants until 1975.
Robert was the Chairman of the Pullman Company, the largest manufacturing corporation at the turn of the 20th century. You can walk through a beautifully restored 10-section Pullman car, the "Sunbeam", tucked into the woods of the estate. It's the same Pullman car that was used by President William McKinley and President Theodore Roosevelt.
Pretty grand, don't you think? It was interesting, though, to read the historical details provided outside of the Sunbeam, telling about how many of the recently freed slaves became hard-working porters at Pullman, serving the wealthy passengers who used Pullman cars for their travel. The porters formed the first all-black union, which was instrumental to the Civil Rights Movement.
The class divide is in evidence inside the mansion, too. The Lincolns employed 15 full-time servants, and the difference between the servants' quarters and the family's living quarters is striking. Not that the servants were living in hardship--far from it! Their quarters were comfortable and quite pleasant, but on a different level entirely from the Lincolns. I felt like I had stepped into the "upstairs/downstairs" world of Downton Abbey! Can't you just picture Anna or Mrs. Hughes wearing the maid's uniform below?
Here's a corner of the grand entry hall...
And here's Mrs. Lincoln's sitting room...
Mrs. Lincoln's bedroom is below...
For contrast, here's a servant's bedroom, below:
First picture below, the Lincoln family dining room. Second picture below, the servants' dining room. (Quite a difference, no?)
I really enjoyed photographing the servants' quarters--the way the rooms were styled was very warm and comfortable. I could clearly picture "life being lived" there. First picture below: A view of the kitchen. Second picture below: The pantry.
An ancestor of the cell phone, below...
The view from the house wasn't too shabby, either! The formal gardens were covered in a blanket of snow, but look at this majestic view of the Green Mountains...
As you can see, the Hildene estate is a far cry from Abraham Lincoln's modest log cabin--and that's a grand understatement!
Thank you kindly to the wonderful staff at Hildene, who were very knowledgeable and accommodating during my visit. I'd be remiss if I didn't note on this green blog that Hildene practices land conservation and sustainability, in addition to their historic preservation. For more information on Hildene, please visit www.hildene.org.
It's a sugar-white world outside my door, icing on every branch. When I've had it up to HERE with the relentless winter weather, I go outside with my camera and point it towards the trees. The winter here is cold and long, but it also just happens to be beautiful.
For those of you who need proof that winter won't last forever, here you go: Golden Summer.
Well, hello there! I'm cutting back from three posts to two per week while I put the finishing touches on my photography e-courses for the year. A brand-new one is in the works (very excited to tell you about it!), so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, here are my favorite finds of the week. Enjoy and kindly share them...
Living in the northeastern United States for all of my life, I've learned to take the four distinct seasons in stride, not expecting too much too soon. So even though March has begun, I remember very well what last March looked like. And if I do forget for a moment, I have pictures like this one above to remind me: The month of March charges in like a lion, roaring all the way!
Hang in there, friends!
P.S. You might've missed these like-minded posts from early on:
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