“If I dismiss the ordinary – waiting for the special, the extreme, the extraordinary to happen – I may just miss my life” – Dani Shapiro
This quote fits this months theme in a way that is very poignant. So often we wait for the next best thing in our lives. We look forward to vacations, we can’t wait for work to be over, or school to be done. We can’t wait for the weekends, or to go to bed at night. So much time is wished away. Dismissing the ordinary is something that can happen with photography too, only taking pictures during monumental events or celebrations. Only taking pictures during the golden hour, or at a beautiful location. What about during our everyday? That matters too, it might even matter more. Our everyday lives and everyday moments are what tell the real story of our lives.
I have been seeing a lot of talk about mindfulness and being present, something I admit I am guilty of not doing as much in my life as I wish. When this theme was suggested it was pretty unanimous that we all felt we needed this push to embrace the moment a bit more in our own lives. What I didn’t realize at the time was that one of our contributors, Sonja Stich, was about to launch a workshop through Beyond the Wanderlust that among many things, speaks to the concept of being mindful. I found Dani Shapiro’s quote in the pages of Sonja’s workshop and felt it deserved a place here as well.
If you are interested in learning more about what Sonja has to say, go check out her workshop, Capture the Energy of Life: Connecting with Your Intuition and Emotions, here.
And now onto each of our interpretations of this month’s theme.
Sonja Stich Fotografias
Monica Hart
Linn Marlen
Johann Hood – Thirty7 Images
Heather Chang
Danielle Stevens
Chelsea Cronkrite – Bird + Bear Photography
Celeste Pavlik
Billie Mae Photography
Anita Cline – My Three Sons Images
Amanda Brooke – Green and Grey Photography
Abigail Fahey
wild radiance 