You are goodness and mercy and compassion and understanding. You are peace and joy and light. You are forgiveness and patience, strength and courage, a helper in time of need, a comforter in time of sorrow, a healer in time of injury, a teacher in times of confusion. You are the deepest wisdom and the highest truth; the greatest peace and the grandest love. You are these things. And in moments of your life you have known yourself to be these things. Choose now to know yourself as these things always.

~  Neale Donald Walsh 

I'm compelled to share this tonight after a conversation with a dear friend . . . I wrote it last year . . . 

It’s been over 25 years since we last spoke.  He was my guiding light and my advisor.  My biggest supporter.  My champion.  My mentor.  My father left us when I was a sophomore in high school.  He had a fatal heart attack. While sitting on the sidelines at my sister’s soccer game.  

The images are burned into my brain.  Noticing that he was slumped over in his chair.   Knowing immediately what had happened.  Jumping down from the stands, slamming my bag into the ground so hard that it shattered my make-up, covering everything inside with a fine, pearly dust that later proved impossible to remove.  (As if I needed another constant reminder that he was gone.) Running across the field, eyes wide, terrified as they checked his pulse, knowing that it was too late to save him.

Fast forward.  The surreal feeling of the funeral home.  The endless chatting. The huge crowds. The heat. The emotional haze. Realizing for the first time that I could be strong in ways that shocked and amazed me. My life would never be the same.

He gave me some advice before he left.  He sat me down one night at the kitchen table, fully aware of what fate had in store.  He said everything he needed to say before going, coaching me through the remainder of my life in one marathon session. 

I look back on that night, and my eyes fill with tears.  I ponder often what might have been had he lived.  How my life would be different.  How I would have been braver, stronger for having had him in my life longer. 

These movie scenes that are your life . . .  

When my grandmother was dying of lung cancer years ago, a hospice nurse visited on a regular basis – caring for my grandmother, caring for us, our hearts broken.  I had never known such love and compassion from a complete stranger.  I’ll never forget writing the long, lyrical thank you note, tears streaming down my cheeks, to the Angel that coached and loved us through those dark days.  A lesson in Gratitude.  A lesson in Love.

The memory is still vivid, as though it happened yesterday. 

Saying “I love you.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Climbing the steps to the second floor.  Steps I had climbed hundreds of times in my youth - on weekends and during long vacations in the hot city, the smell of melted roofing tar permeating the thick summer air.  Drifting off to sleep. Waking up to the news that she was gone.  Hearing sounds and conversations you never want to hear.

Sometimes there are No Tomorrows.   

Say Everything there is to say.  Say it Now.

Love.  Live.

Like There is No Tomorrow.

With Love & Gratitude,

         Stephanie Anne

Good Night, Dear Friends . . . 

I love the silent hour of night, for blissful dreams may then arise, revealing to my charmed sight what may not bless my waking eyes.
― Anne Brontë

Over and over, we are broken on the shore of life. Our stubborn egos are knocked around, and our frightened hearts are broken open — not once, and not in predictable patterns, but in surprising ways and for as long as we live. The promise of being broken and the possibility of being opened are written into the contract of human life. Certainly this tumultuous journey on the waves can be tiresome. When the sea is rough, and when we are suffering, we may want to give up hope and give in to despair. But brave pilgrims have gone before us. They tell us to venture forth with faith and vision. Rumi speaks for them all when he says:

Drum sounds rise on the air, 
and with them, my heart.
A voice inside the beat says, 
I know you are tired, 
but come.
This is the way.

May you listen to the voice within the beat even when you are tired. When you feel yourself breaking down, may you break open instead. May every experience in life be a door that opens your heart, expands your understanding, and leads you to freedom. If you are weary, may you be aroused by passion and purpose. If you are blameful and bitter, may you be sweetened by hope and humor. If you are frightened, may you be emboldened by a big consciousness far wiser than your fear. If you are lonely, may you find love, may you find friendship. If you are lost, may you understand that we are all lost, and still we are guided — by Strange Angels and Sleeping Giants, by our better and kinder natures, by the vibrant voice within the beat. May you follow that voice, for This is the way  — the hero’s journey, the life worth living, the reason we are here. 

     Elizabeth Lesser, Broken Open

The windows of my soul I throw
Wide open to the sun.
~ John Greenleaf Whittier

Do not be afraid, dear one. You can trust your bliss. That is why it was delivered to you in the first place. You can trust the finely tuned crosshairs of your dream because it knows exactly where to go and what to do. And it will inform you as you go. Your only job is to receive.

- Suzanne Falter-Barns

There is only you and your camera. The limitations in your photography are in yourself, for what we see is what we are.

- ernst haas

In the Pouring Rain
Baltimore, Maryland

The Dance of Dreams
2012

The Invitation

It doesn’t interest me
what you do for a living.
I want to know
what you ache for
and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me
how old you are.
I want to know 
if you will risk 
looking like a fool
for love
for your dream
for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me
what planets are 
squaring your moon...
I want to know
if you have touched
the centre of your own sorrow
if you have been opened
by life’s betrayals
or have become shrivelled and closed
from fear of further pain.

I want to know
if you can sit with pain
mine or your own
without moving to hide it
or fade it
or fix it.

I want to know
if you can be with joy
mine or your own
if you can dance with wildness
and let the ecstasy fill you 
to the tips of your fingers and toes
without cautioning us
to be careful
to be realistic
to remember the limitations
of being human.

It doesn’t interest me
if the story you are telling me
is true.
I want to know if you can
disappoint another
to be true to yourself.
If you can bear
the accusation of betrayal
and not betray your own soul.
If you can be faithless
and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty
even when it is not pretty
every day.
And if you can source your own life
from its presence.

I want to know
if you can live with failure
yours and mine
and still stand at the edge of the lake
and shout to the silver of the full moon,
“Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me
to know where you live
or how much money you have.
I want to know if you can get up
after the night of grief and despair
weary and bruised to the bone
and do what needs to be done
to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me
who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know 
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.

I want to know
if you can be alone 
with yourself
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments.

By Oriah © Mountain Dreaming
The Invitation

So many people are looking for it: their Big Life Purpose.

Becoming YOU is your purpose. YOU are the very purpose of your existence.

Realizing what lights your fire and floats your boat— that’s your life purpose.

What else could it be?

If it gives you true joy (not the seemingly happy high that is fleeting, but the reliable, always-there kind of satisfaction) to rock that guitar, to make people laugh, to discover the world, to make things a little more beautiful wherever you go, to feed, to stir it up, to clean it up, to execute the plan, to bank the cash, to be a compassionate citizen, to explore nonstop, or purely to seek pleasure… then, that’s your life purpose!

Your life purpose is what you say it is.

Who could tell you otherwise?

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 674-684). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition. 

The Guest House 

This being human is a guest house. 
Every morning a new arrival. 

A joy, a depression, a meanness, 
some momentary awareness comes 
as an unexpected visitor. 

Welcome and entertain them all! 
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows, 
who violently sweep your house 
empty of its furniture, 
still, treat each guest honorably. 
He may be clearing you out 
for some new delight. 

The dark thought, the shame, the malice, 
meet them at the door laughing, 
and invite them in. 

Be grateful for whoever comes, 
because each has been sent 
as a guide from beyond.

~ Rumi 

Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.

- Henry David Thoreau

Good Morning, My Friends . . .

Peace, love and joy to you this fine day . . . . . 

 You can only know as much happiness and joy as you can know vulnerability.
- Kahlil Gibran

Mark Isham - My Wife With Champagne Shoulders

A little touch of Summer warmth today . . . 

May your day be filled with Love & Laughter . . . 

For David.
by  To Write Love On Her Arms.
https://www.facebook.com/towriteloveonherarms/info
https://www.facebook.com/notes/to-write-love-on-her-arms/for-david/444276064657

i sort of hit a wall last week. It’s the feeling that while the story I get invited to tell is impressive to some, the story that i actually live is not. i feel lately like i live a story about a guy who rides on airplanes and in rental cars and hopes the pillow is comfortable in the hotel room. The smiling irony in the whole thing is that I get invited to tell people about community but then that turns out to be something I don’t really have in my own life. i have access to it but community is something you have to choose.
 
So last week i started to feel the weight of too many airports and too much time away from home. But i was already committed to going to an event. In fairness, this event was a gathering that i was honored to be part of  and it would mean the chance to catch up with friends. But there would also be a lot of folks i didn’t know, which meant there would be a lot of first day of school moments where you answer the “what do you do?” question and hope that people like you. (These moments are not fun for introverts, especially tired introverts who wish they were at home.)
 
But instead of impressive people attempting to impress each other, i found a group of people willing to be human, willing to be honest and vulnerable in admitting the broken parts of their stories. There were confessions of mistakes and questions and doubts. There were grown men with tears in their eyes, willing to go there in front of people they didn’t know. 
 
There was a man with cancer in his body and with his wife at his side, he spoke of the pain of the last year, the fear and embarrassment of the seizures that find him now. He spoke of the kindness of his friends, the miracle of the thing we call community. He spoke with love for his five year-old daughter and there were questions that did not require words. 
 
We were invited to pray for him, to put our hands to his body and ask God to heal him. i have no idea how that works, why God fixes some people and lets others die. i don’t write much about faith because i feel like almost all of the words have been abused. I’ve become embarrassed by most things called “Christian” but i still believe in a God who loves people. Anyway, we were invited to pray and I knew i had to go. i made my way close to him, to where i could reach through the crowd to touch his right arm. Different people prayed out loud and i don’t remember the words but I remember crying and i remember the feeling of wanting this man to be okay. 
 
i walked back to my chair, tears falling down my face but without shame. And it struck me that this moment had happened inside a gathering that I had feared might be a shallow celebration of folks with lots of answers. Instead, the moment that moved me most was the one without answers. It was a group of us meeting our friend in his enormous question. i go to so many things where it’s experts and leaders and public speaker people. There is a strange circuit of people that the world calls important. 
 
This is not a “Come to Jesus” blog. It is simply a confession that with all that I’ve seen in the last few years, all the events I’ve been invited to and all the people that I’ve met, I am less and less impressed by “impressive” things or people who are presented as having lots of answers. i am impressed by people who are honest and kind. i am inspired by moments of vulnerability, moments of confession and compassion, moments where someone makes it clear that they are a person in need of other people and someone else makes it clear that the first person is not alone. 
 
We’ve done some winning in the last few years. There have been some bright moments and surprising open doors. MTV and USA Today and Rolling Stone. CBS News. None of it meant as much to me as that moment praying for that man, when crying was the most appropriate response, because there are tragedies in this life that deserve our tears. I will not forget the privilege of standing in the small sea of strangers, reaching into sickness and mystery and hoping God might be real and hoping that he loves His children. 
 
Be loved. Be known. Love people and know people. Be so brave as to raise a hand for help when you need it. Make friends and make sure they know they matter. Be loyal to them and fight for them. Remind them what’s true and invite them to do the same when you forget. If you do some losing or you walk with someone else in their defeat, live with dignity and grace. It is a middle finger to the darkness. 
 
In the event we live to be old, i doubt our last days will find us aching for success or achievements. I doubt we’ll ask for bigger names or internet followers or virtual friends. If influence comes then let it come but it was never the point of the story. We will look back and smile at the moments that were real, the people who knew us and the people that we knew, the relationships and conversations, the days we walked together, the story that we told. We will consider the moments when we were allowed to show our beauty and our mess and the miracle moments when we were embraced by people who loved us even at our worst. And they loved us not for any sort of fame but simply because our stories had joined somehow and that miracle of friendship had taken place. 
 
An hour after the prayer, it was time to say goodbye. The man, who I now consider a friend, told me that on his darkest nights, he wears a TWLOHA shirt to bed. He said he does this to remember that he’s loved. 
 
Peace to you tonight.
jamie
 
PS: “Friendship is a diminishing of distance between people.”
– Keith Richards 


_____________________________________________________
With profound gratitude to +Jeremy Cowart for sharing this on FB . . . 
- Stephanie 

I so miss my Wonderful Friends here . . . . Hoping your day is filled with Love and Laughter . . . 

A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day of his life, in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul.
― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative. We are mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present, and future mingle and pull us backward, forward, or fix us in the present. We are made up of layers, cells, constellations.
― Anaïs Nin

All Things With Great Love . . .
2012

Kiss
2012

Cheers
2012

I have had the great fortune of being chosen to participate in the Summer Session of the +G+ Mentorship Program for Photographers with +Robin Griggs Wood.  The last nine weeks have been a great journey of self discovery and practical application of artistic principles.  I thought I would share my recent post to the class, as it applies to all of us.  

Enjoy the day and all that it brings, my friends!


PLUS Post
Week 8

I spend a good deal of time late at night cruising through the G+ stream and watching photography videos . . . lighting . . . portraiture . . . film work . . . feeding my brain after long days coaching and cuddling two little people.   It's bliss, this soaking in of information, this eye candy, swimming in this deep pool of inspiration.   I have said to those who know me best that it is my goal to produce work that stops people in their tracks.   In order to do that, you must feed your brain.  You must practice.  You must experiment.  Indeed, You Must Play.

I pass on two treasures this week that I found inspiring and comforting all at once . . . 

An outstanding episode of Film that reminded me that we are all human and that our work is colored by our choice of tools and toys as much as it is by our life experience.

http://framednetwork.com/episodes/film-14/

And a quote that I shared on my G+ page that you may have missed - it speaks for itself:

1. Art is made by a human being. 
2. Art is created to have an impact — to change someone else. 
3. Art is a gift. You can sell the souvenir, the canvas, the recording… but the idea itself is free, and the generosity is a critical part of making art. 

Being artful is pouring your soul into it. When we’re giving our best, we’re artistic. When we’re intentionally making something more beautiful, more understandable, more accessible, we’re artistic. 

When we reach below the surface and bring something thoughtful forward, we’re being artistic. It’s happening all of the time. 

When you’re bringing your whole self to the party, you’re practicing your art form. Be it in conversation, on the canvas, or on the court, when you’re creating something from your soul, you’re making poetry happen. 

“Life itself is a creative act,” declares Patti Digh. “I see poetry everywhere— in the way a waiter hands me my vegan enchilada, in the way the train doors close at the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, in the reflected smile of a cab driver in his rearview mirror when I ask about his children whose pictures are so proudly displayed.” Patti is the author of Life Is a Verb and a diversity trainer. I attended a teleseminar of Patti’s called “Playing with Your Creative Blocks,” in which she posed this question:

If you knew that your art would support your life, how would you live?

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 2182-2196). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

So, go live your art . . . 

Many thanks +Robin Griggs Wood for your kindness and your words of wisdom . . . 

Keeping our fears secret only gives them more power.
- Susan L. Taylor

Do not pray for easy lives.
Pray to be stronger men.
Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers.
Pray for powers equal to your tasks.
Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle.

— Phillips Brooks

One last shot (an old fave that hit my radar again this week) before I log off today . . . the lights are flickering, and it's only a matter of time before they konk for good . . . See you on the flip side of Sandy . . . 

May your day be filled with Love and Laughter . . . . . .

 

Simple Life
2012

Dark Side of the Moon
2012

We live under the pretense that in order for something to be divine it has to be perfect. We are mistaken. In fact, the exact opposite is true. To be divine is to be whole and to be whole is to be everything: the positive and the negative, the good and the bad, the holy and the devil. When we take the time to discover our shadow and its gifts we will understand what Jung meant by, "The gold is in the dark." Each of us needs to find that gold in order to reunite with our sacred self.

 -  Debbie Ford

all of life is about feeding yourself, with love and art and people and books and music and acts of kindness. we are nourished by the lives we build, layer by layer of detail and experience, pain and mistakes. these things have to be our own. there is no way to copy it or will it or wish it into being. revelations are all around us. sometimes they take great loss to reveal themselves.

- Amy Grace

A Course in Miracles asks, “Would you rather be right or happy?” 

Clearly, the loving response is to choose happiness over the ego’s need to be right— but happiness can be hard to achieve when you believe you’ve been deeply wronged. 

A lack of forgiveness hurts us in nasty ways. When the ego blocks us from forgiving, we inevitably take on certain fearful archetypes. Here are some of the personality traits we pick up from the ego’s unforgiving ways. 

The Daily Victim: When we’re unwilling to forgive, we wake up each day feeling like a victim. We hold tight to our past hurt and resentment, replaying it in our mind over and over again. This automatic replay reinforces the ego’s illusion and strengthens our perception of being the victim. Eventually we identify so closely with the role of victim that we begin to establish that dynamic in all our relationships. 

The Angry Boxer: When the ego feels attacked, its immediate response is to attack back. The ego has faith in fear and believes that we’re at the mercy of a cruel world. So it keeps its boxing gloves slung over the shoulder, always on alert to fight off an attack. These defensive thoughts and energy bleed off the angry boxer and inevitably create more negative experiences. It’s a wicked cycle.

The Shutdown and Protected: This is the person whose ego has convinced them to shut themselves off from the world for fear of being hurt again. The shutdown person lives small, hides out, and evades all potential conflict by avoiding intimacy altogether.

These are just a few of the many ways the ego’s lack of forgiveness holds us back in relationships. Letting go of our need to be right and surrendering to forgiveness is the only way out of the ego’s unforgiving nightmare. If we truly want to enjoy our relationships, we must respect them through the miraculous act of forgiveness. 

A Course in Miracles suggests we use this affirmation: “I could see peace instead of this.” When we choose for peace, we’ll put down the boxing gloves, come out of hiding, and throw down the F word. The process of forgiveness requires willingness to see things differently. The Course doesn’t suggest we pretend like nothing happened — rather, that we acknowledge our ego’s experience and choose to perceive it with love.

By Gabrielle Bernstein, May Cause Miracles: A 40-Day Guidebook of Subtle Shifts for Radical Change and Unlimited Happiness

Love After Love

The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
and each will smile at the other’s welcome,

and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you

all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,

the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel your own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.


― Derek Walcott

We should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once.
― Friedrich Nietzsche

In the Clear
2012

Pagoda
Patterson Park, Baltimore City
2012

Drive By Shooting
2012

1. Art is made by a human being. 
2. Art is created to have an impact— to change someone else. 
3. Art is a gift. You can sell the souvenir, the canvas, the recording… but the idea itself is free, and the generosity is a critical part of making art. 

Being artful is pouring your soul into it. When we’re giving our best, we’re artistic. When we’re intentionally making something more beautiful, more understandable, more accessible, we’re artistic. 

When we reach below the surface and bring something thoughtful forward, we’re being artistic. It’s happening all of the time. 

When you’re bringing your whole self to the party, you’re practicing your art form. Be it in conversation, on the canvas, or on the court, when you’re creating something from your soul, you’re making poetry happen. 

“Life itself is a creative act,” declares Patti Digh. “I see poetry everywhere— in the way a waiter hands me my vegan enchilada, in the way the train doors close at the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, in the reflected smile of a cab driver in his rearview mirror when I ask about his children whose pictures are so proudly displayed.” Patti is the author of Life Is a Verb and a diversity trainer. I attended a teleseminar of Patti’s called “Playing with Your Creative Blocks,” in which she posed this question:

If you knew that your art would support your life, how would you live?

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 2182-2196). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

Yep.
2012

Every day we slaughter our finest impulses. 

That is why we get a heartache when we read those lines written by the hand of a master and recognize them as our own, as the tender shoots which we stifled because we lacked the faith to believe in our own powers, our own criterion of truth and beauty. 

Every man, when he gets quiet, when he becomes desperately honest with himself, is capable of uttering profound truths. 

We all derive from the same source. there is no mystery about the origin of things. We are all part of creation, all kings, all poets, all musicians; we have only to open up, only to discover what is already there.

― Henry Miller

Tango.
2012

Happy Mother's Day!  


Ideal teachers are those who use themselves as bridges over which they invite their students to cross, then having facilitated their crossing, joyfully collapse, encouraging them to create bridges of their own. 

- Nikos Kazantzakis

All Things with Great Love . . . 

We are all so blessed to have found each other here . . . though my visits are few and far between these days, I cherish the G+ friends that have graced my life and touched my heart . . . 

+Gene Bowker, my dear friend, I wish you the sweetest of days today.   I hope you can feel this G+ outpouring of Love in your heart and soul . . .   You have touched so many lives . . .   

For your love and support, your thoughtfulness, your kindness, your generosity, your gentle coaching, your art, your friendship . . . I am profoundly grateful.    

Happy Birthday, my friend!
#happybdaygene 

Hug and kiss whoever helped get you - financially, mentally, morally, emotionally - to this day. Parents, mentors, friends, teachers. If you're too uptight to do that, at least do the old handshake thing, but I recommend a hug and a kiss. Don't let the sun go down without saying thank you to someone, and without admitting to yourself that absolutely no one gets this far alone.

— Stephen King

Broken Down
2012

Adversity is a natural part of being human. It is the height of arrogance to prescribe a moral code or health regime or spiritual practice as an amulet to keep things from falling apart. Things do fall apart. It is in their nature to do so. When we try to protect ourselves from the inevitability of change, we are not listening to the soul. We are listening to our fear of life and death, our lack of faith, our smaller ego's will to prevail. To listen to your soul is to stop fighting with life--to stop fighting when things fall apart; when they don't go our away, when we get sick, when we are betrayed or mistreated or misunderstood. To listen to the soul is to slow down, to feel deeply, to see ourselves clearly, to surrender to discomfort and uncertainty and to wait.
― Elizabeth Lesser

What we strive for
in perfection
is not what turns us
into the lit angel
we desire
what disturbs
and then nourishes
has everything
we need.
—David Whyte

Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
- Desmond Tutu

Sweet Dreams . . . 

Good Night, My Friends . . . 

Mark Isham - In a Silent Way (Milestones)

Light is precious in a world so dark. 
― Kate DiCamillo

When we have arrived at the question, the answer is already near.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Good Night, My Friends!

Silo Point
Baltimore

Taxi
2012

ZipCars
NYC
2012

A fun little shot for the handsome gents of +TransportTuesday today . . . 

+Gene Bowker +Michael Earley +Joe Paul +Steve Boyko 

Enjoy the day!  :O)

#transporttuesday  

Skatepark
Central Park
2012

Stalking
2012

The moment we begin to fear the opinions of others and hesitate to tell the truth that is in us, and from motives of policy are silent when we should speak, the divine floods of light and life no longer flow into our souls.

― Elizabeth Cady Stanton

But smiles and tears are so alike with me, they are neither of them confined to any particular feelings: I often cry when I am happy, and smile when I am sad. 
― Anne Brontë

Long March
2012

Blue Collar
Baltimore City
c. 2012

Love . . . 

The Same Old Tears Keep Falling
The Flowers of Palo Alto
2012

  #floralfriday  by +Tamara Pruessner 

One can live at a low flame. Most people do. We're afraid to look foolish, or feel too extravagantly, or make a mistake, or risk unnecessary pain. One fears intensity. But, given something like death, what does it matter if one looks foolish now and then, or tries too hard, or cares too deeply? A shallow life creates a world flat as a shadow. In that half-light, the sun never burns, risks recede, safety becomes habit, and individuals have little to teach other.

- Diane Ackerman

You cannot save people. 
You can only love them.

- Anaïs Nin

Let's Dance . . . 

I haven't had much time to shoot recreationally lately . . . for some reason, this oldie has been swimming around in my head for days . . . so I thought I would share . . . 

Hope this finds you all well, my dear friends . . . Miss you . . .

Our dreams and desires define us, whether they are broken, scarcely remembered, on the verge of reality, or in full bloom. Dreams pilot our choices and shape the landscape of our lives. 

We get so many societal messages about what the Right Dream is that it gets hard to decipher what our own dream is. The pandemic that we have of overconsumption is directly related to this concept of dreaming big, bigger, biggest-possible big. 

Big can be bountiful, but what if your dream is to live simply— to have enough? Not more than enough— but enough. 

The trouble with dreams hinged to goals is that many goal-setting lists are as one-dimensional as shopping lists: get house by the water with hardwood 
floors; get married; have two kids, preferably twins; run a half marathon. 

Attaining these things could be the work of your soul or a mindless pursuit. Are your aspirations a vocational impulse or a competitive sport? Are you trying to impress your dead ancestors or leave your mark on the world? 

If your goals aren’t synced with the substance of your heart, then achieving them won’t matter much.

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 1373-1383). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition. 

Expect to have hope rekindled.

Expect your prayers to be answered in wondrous ways. 

The dry seasons in life do not last.

The spring rains will come again.

- Sarah Ban Breathnach

We can't help but wonder how much difference one person makes in the world. We look inside ourselves, questioning if we have the capacity for heroism and greatness. 

But the truth is, every time we take an action, we make an impact. Every single thing we do has an effect on the people around us. Every choice we make sends ripples out into the world. Our smallest acts of kindness can cause a chain reaction of unforeseen benefits for people we've never met. 

We might not witness those results, but they happen all
the same.

- Jake Bohm, Touch, The Road Not Taken

Good Morning, Dear Friends . . . 

Peace, Love, Laughter to you and yours today . . . 


For what is it to die,
But to stand in the sun and melt into the wind?
And when the Earth has claimed our limbs,
Then we shall truly dance.

― Kahlil Gibran

Downtown Lights
In Baltimore
2012

http://youtu.be/fa4jt5ixg9M

At various times in our lives, we struggle with loneliness, relationships, finding our voice, illness, loss, trying to leave the past behind . . . .

(Here’s a hint: Maybe you should try to Embrace your past.  And Forgive Yourself in the process.)

We all want to be Better, Faster, Stronger.  We are all striving to succeed.  We all experience failure.  

We have hopes, fears, goals and dreams – both on the surface and buried deep within us waiting to be unearthed.  We are all searching – for love, friendship, understanding and respect.  For Answers.

We are complex creatures.   In the same moment, we can feel happy, sad, angry, frustrated, exhilarated and empowered.   Though it may sometimes feel like it – we aren’t Crazy, we are Simply Human.

The key is tapping in to our Humanity.  Opening our eyes to what we have in common.

Recognize and acknowledge the humanity in another and you possess the ability to make a powerful connection with that person.  Rather than objectifying or labeling them, open yourself up to the reality that They are like You – Happy, Sad, Joyful, Lost.  Growing.  Becoming.

The unfriendly grocery clerk, the ex-wife, the awful boss, the guy who won’t stop tailgating you. They are all human.

How do you handle people who bring negativity or sadness into your life?  Know that they are on your path for a reason.  They have been sent to you to challenge you, teach you and elevate you to a new, higher plane.  To teach you patience, compassion, conflict management . . . the list is Endless.

The real Power in these moments?   You can extract the lessons learned and use what you have learned to elevate others.  Live and learn.  Pass it on.  Pay it forward.  We are all on this journey together.

You can have a major impact on the life of another person by simply recognizing them for who they are, respecting the significance of your connection and opening yourself up to what you have to teach one another.

You never know what is bubbling under the surface for someone else.  What lurks that they are afraid to share but so desperately need to in order to Let it Go. To grow. To overcome obstacles.

Be there for them.

I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time trying to determine how to focus my efforts – how to change the world in a meaningful way.  What I finally realized is that you don’t have to solve world hunger to make an impact.  You simply need to follow your heart and make yourself vulnerable in the world.

Do those things you fear most.  Take a chance – reach out in large and small ways to touch the hearts and lives of other people.  Lift them up as you would want someone to lift you.  Share with them the gifts they so desperately need from you. There are concrete ways that we can touch the lives of other people and make an Enormous difference.

Be grateful for these opportunities and take the leap.  You’ll be glad you did.

It is so easy to walk away and leave an opportunity on the table.  Do you really want to take the easy way out?  Or would you rather live your life as an agent for change?

You have the opportunity every day to be Someone’s Angel. Someone’s Mentor. Someone’s Hero.  

Wouldn’t you want them to take the leap and be Yours?

With Love & Gratitude –

Stephanie Anne

Mood Swings 
Boordy Vineyards
2012

Zing.
Baltimore, MD
2012

Good Morning, My Friends!

Inspired by +Thorn Button to look at the world from a different perspective . . . 

#ratsview

Today, I want to fly . . . 

Good Morning, All!

Every now and then,
when the world sits just right,
a gentle breath of heaven
fills my soul with delight...
- Hazelmarie ‘Mattie’ Elliott, A Breath of Heaven

Another favorite from the archives . . .

Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace.

- Victor Hugo

RESHARE:
Sharing a few of my favorite G+ posts this week . . . 

xoxoxo
S.


#GMAPP3  #GMAPP3auditing

Reshared text:
I have had the great fortune of being chosen to participate in the Summer Session of the +G+ Mentorship Program for Photographers with +Robin Griggs Wood.  The last nine weeks have been a great journey of self discovery and practical application of artistic principles.  I thought I would share my recent post to the class, as it applies to all of us.  

Enjoy the day and all that it brings, my friends!


PLUS Post
Week 8

I spend a good deal of time late at night cruising through the G+ stream and watching photography videos . . . lighting . . . portraiture . . . film work . . . feeding my brain after long days coaching and cuddling two little people.   It's bliss, this soaking in of information, this eye candy, swimming in this deep pool of inspiration.   I have said to those who know me best that it is my goal to produce work that stops people in their tracks.   In order to do that, you must feed your brain.  You must practice.  You must experiment.  Indeed, You Must Play.

I pass on two treasures this week that I found inspiring and comforting all at once . . . 

An outstanding episode of Film that reminded me that we are all human and that our work is colored by our choice of tools and toys as much as it is by our life experience.

http://framednetwork.com/episodes/film-14/

And a quote that I shared on my G+ page that you may have missed - it speaks for itself:

1. Art is made by a human being. 
2. Art is created to have an impact — to change someone else. 
3. Art is a gift. You can sell the souvenir, the canvas, the recording… but the idea itself is free, and the generosity is a critical part of making art. 

Being artful is pouring your soul into it. When we’re giving our best, we’re artistic. When we’re intentionally making something more beautiful, more understandable, more accessible, we’re artistic. 

When we reach below the surface and bring something thoughtful forward, we’re being artistic. It’s happening all of the time. 

When you’re bringing your whole self to the party, you’re practicing your art form. Be it in conversation, on the canvas, or on the court, when you’re creating something from your soul, you’re making poetry happen. 

“Life itself is a creative act,” declares Patti Digh. “I see poetry everywhere— in the way a waiter hands me my vegan enchilada, in the way the train doors close at the Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, in the reflected smile of a cab driver in his rearview mirror when I ask about his children whose pictures are so proudly displayed.” Patti is the author of Life Is a Verb and a diversity trainer. I attended a teleseminar of Patti’s called “Playing with Your Creative Blocks,” in which she posed this question:

If you knew that your art would support your life, how would you live?

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 2182-2196). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

So, go live your art . . . 

Many thanks +Robin Griggs Wood for your kindness and your words of wisdom . . . 

Emotional discomfort, when accepted, rises, crests and falls in a series of waves. Each wave washes a part of us away and deposits treasures we never imagined. 

Out goes naivete, in comes wisdom; out goes anger, in comes discernment; out goes despair, in comes kindness. 

No one would call it easy, but the rhythm of emotional pain that we learn to tolerate is natural, constructive and expansive . . . 

The pain leaves you healthier than it found you.

― Martha Beck

But hope is no less realistic than despair.
It is still our choice whether to live in light or lie down in darkness.
― Rick Yancey

Where there is great love there are always miracles.
- Willa Cather

Good Morning, My Friends!

A little flower album for you . . . 

I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one.
-  Edna St. Vincent Millay, "Afternoon on a Hill"

You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star.
- Nietzsche

Good Morning, All!

Enjoy the day and all that it brings!

Listening is giving the other person the experience of being heard.
- Bix Bickson

http://www.daniellelaporte.com/inspiration-spirituality-articles/listening-is-giving-the-other-person-the-experience-of-being-heard/

RESHARE:
A bit of a replay for a girl short on time to process these days . . . 

Love & hugs, my friends . . . 

S.

Reshared text:
At various times in our lives, we struggle with loneliness, relationships, finding our voice, illness, loss, trying to leave the past behind . . . .

(Here’s a hint: Maybe you should try to Embrace your past.  And Forgive Yourself in the process.)

We all want to be Better, Faster, Stronger.  We are all striving to succeed.  We all experience failure.  

We have hopes, fears, goals and dreams – both on the surface and buried deep within us waiting to be unearthed.  We are all searching – for love, friendship, understanding and respect.  For Answers.

We are complex creatures.   In the same moment, we can feel happy, sad, angry, frustrated, exhilarated and empowered.   Though it may sometimes feel like it – we aren’t Crazy, we are Simply Human.

The key is tapping in to our Humanity.  Opening our eyes to what we have in common.

Recognize and acknowledge the humanity in another and you possess the ability to make a powerful connection with that person.  Rather than objectifying or labeling them, open yourself up to the reality that They are like You – Happy, Sad, Joyful, Lost.  Growing.  Becoming.

The unfriendly grocery clerk, the ex-wife, the awful boss, the guy who won’t stop tailgating you. They are all human.

How do you handle people who bring negativity or sadness into your life?  Know that they are on your path for a reason.  They have been sent to you to challenge you, teach you and elevate you to a new, higher plane.  To teach you patience, compassion, conflict management . . . the list is Endless.

The real Power in these moments?   You can extract the lessons learned and use what you have learned to elevate others.  Live and learn.  Pass it on.  Pay it forward.  We are all on this journey together.

You can have a major impact on the life of another person by simply recognizing them for who they are, respecting the significance of your connection and opening yourself up to what you have to teach one another.

You never know what is bubbling under the surface for someone else.  What lurks that they are afraid to share but so desperately need to in order to Let it Go. To grow. To overcome obstacles.

Be there for them.

I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time trying to determine how to focus my efforts – how to change the world in a meaningful way.  What I finally realized is that you don’t have to solve world hunger to make an impact.  You simply need to follow your heart and make yourself vulnerable in the world.

Do those things you fear most.  Take a chance – reach out in large and small ways to touch the hearts and lives of other people.  Lift them up as you would want someone to lift you.  Share with them the gifts they so desperately need from you. There are concrete ways that we can touch the lives of other people and make an Enormous difference.

Be grateful for these opportunities and take the leap.  You’ll be glad you did.

It is so easy to walk away and leave an opportunity on the table.  Do you really want to take the easy way out?  Or would you rather live your life as an agent for change?

You have the opportunity every day to be Someone’s Angel. Someone’s Mentor. Someone’s Hero.  

Wouldn’t you want them to take the leap and be Yours?

With Love & Gratitude –

Stephanie Anne

There will always be suffering.
But we must not suffer over the suffering.

—Alan Watts

We can still astonish the gods in humanity
And be the stuff of future legends,
If we but dare to be real,
And have the courage to see
That this is the time to dream
The best dream of them all.
—Ben Okri, Mental Flight

Laporte, Danielle (2012-04-17). The Fire Starter Sessions: A Soulful + Practical Guide to Creating Success on Your Own Terms (Kindle Locations 1367-1372). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.
#daniellelaporte  

nightwalk
2012

My #ratsview  for +Thorn Button . . . 

Knock Knock.  Me Again.
2012

Good Morning, My Friends!

On the road today . . . dodging raindrops . . . sharing another old favorite . . . 

. . . the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.
― Jack Kerouac, On the Road

Love Notes
Week 10: Depth of Field

#2012Project52
+GPLUS::P52::2012
+Project52-2012
Curated by +Giuseppe Basile & +Kate Church

How strange that the nature of life is change, yet the nature of human beings is to resist change. And how ironic that the difficult times we fear might ruin us are the very ones that can break us open and help us blossom into who we were meant to be.

— Elizabeth Lesser 

Marshmallow Night
2012

Delicious autumn!  My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.  

- George Eliot

Crossing Over
2012

To live content with small means. To seek elegance rather than luxury... listen to stars and birds and babes and sages with an open heart. To study hard, think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions. Never hurry. In a word, to let the spiritual, the unbidden and the unconscious rise up through the common. This is my symphony.

~ William Henry Channing

Night Through My Eyes . . . 

Enjoy the day and all that it brings, my friends . . . 

Miss my time here among friends . . . 

Night, the beloved.  Night, when words fade and things come alive.  When the destructive analysis of day is done, and all that is truly important becomes whole and sound again.  When man reassembles his fragmentary self and grows with the calm of a tree.  
-  Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Tip Toe 2
Central Park
2012

Cityscapes
NYC
2012

Domino Sugars
Baltimore City

Soon
2012

Yes - Soon [Live 2002]

And at some point you realize that there are more flavors of pain than coffee. There's the little empty pain of leaving something behind ‒ graduating, taking the next step forward, walking out of something familiar and safe into the unknown. There's the big, whirling pain of life upending all of your plans and expectations. There's the sharp little pains of failure, and the more obscure aches of successes that didn't give you what you thought they would. There are the vicious, stabbing pains of hopes being torn up. The sweet little pains of finding others, giving them your love, and taking joy in their life as they grow and learn. There's the steady pain of empathy that you shrug off so you can stand beside a wounded friend and help them bear their burdens. 

And if you are very, very lucky, there are a few blazing hot little pains you feel when you realize that you are standing in a moment of utter perfection, an instant of triumph, or happiness, or mirth which at the same time cannot possibly last ‒ and yet will remain with you for life.

Everyone is down on pain, because they forget something important about it: Pain is for the living. 
― Jim Butcher

The things that matter most in our lives are not fantastic or grand. They are the moments when we touch one another, when we are there in the most attentive or caring way.

This simple and profound intimacy is the love that we all long for.

These moments of touching and being touched can become a foundation for a path with heart, and they take place in the most immediate and direct way.  

Mother Teresa put it like this:  "In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love."

- Jack Kornfield

if i told you that i love you, would you hold me til the madness ends . . .
2012

The Deep End
2012

50 States
NYC
2012