Creating with intention...
Hello friend!
Please join me as I sit down for a coffee and a chat. I am having one of those days where I need a friend or two. The view outside my studio window looks like mother nature just gave a wee snow globe a gentle shake and set it down to rest. There is a hushed silence in the room, the kind I would have wished for when my kids were loud toddlers. The weatherman is predicting six inches of snow today, shall we make that two cups of coffee?
My fun loving partner in life, Mr. H, sings out “Ring-a-ding-ding” when it snows, reminding me of when our kids would wake up to a “no school snow day”, peals of laughter over the news made it feel like Christmas morning in our house. Mr. H still feels the same way about snow. It’s a signal that the fireplace will be well stocked with wood and something yummy, perhaps my favorite, Beef Bourguignon, will be brewing on the stove or maybe a dozen blueberry muffins will be baking in the oven. Who is going to play chef for the day is always up for discussion.
We had a big breakthrough today. We have at least 15” of snow outside and up to now, try as I might, I haven’t been able to get Mr. H onto a pair of snowshoes. Instead, he and our eager pup, Tani, trudge through the snow, heavy footed, up and down, while Tani flies through the air, bunny hopping to stay above it all.
One can only trudge in that much snow for so long but he seemed determined. Then, out of the blue, he asked me to show him how to put snowshoes on. It turns out he was ready and I have our neighbor, Bryan, to thank. He asked Mr. H to join him and a few friends for a snowshoe through the woods. My nagging days are over thanks to Bryan. I sat Mr. H down, showed him how to strap in the snowshoes, set up his walking sticks and off he went, with Tani in his wake. Memories of our children and their enthusiasm for “no school snow days” lingered. I heard a little “Ring-a-ding-ding” as he snowshoed away. Happy man, happy dog.
Do you have a few things that you have been putting off lately?
I started to think about those things we put off. The things we save for another day, another month, another life.
Never say never…
I shouldn’t complain about Mr. H, if anything I am the last person to talk about putting things off. I have a secret and for those of you who know the ins and out of a camera, it will seem crazy. All these years, all these photos in my travel files….and I have never ventured into Manual Mode on my camera. The mode when you have to completely think for yourself.
It is not something I broadcast, the fact that learning the workings of my camera is like one of those head banging school math problems of yesteryear.
A train leaves Cairo at 3:00 am, averaging 30 mph.
Another train headed in the same direction leaves Cairo at 6:00 am, averaging 60 mph.
To the nearest tenth, how many hours after the second train leaves will it overtake the first train? here
I made a few decisions at the start of the year, the kind I admit only to myself. One of the decisions was to sign up for a January Photography Challenge with the wonderfully talented Carole Poirot. I wanted to start the new year challenged to learn. A few days into the month, Carole asked us to work only in manual mode to capture steam rising from a cup. I nearly fell over at this request.
I said to myself… “I can’t do that”
And then I asked myself … ”why not?”
My inner self said….”Woman up Jeanne, it’s time to figure it out”.
And so…I put on my working boots, grabbed my camera and put the kettle to boil.
My first idea seemed so clever at the time. Fill a flask with boiling water, go off to the woods, place a coffee cup on a log along our stream, pour and shoot. Guess what? That didn’t work. The water was cold by the time I got there. Tani jumped on the log and knocked over the cup and I went home grumpy.
The next day I tried again and again, burned my fingers in the process, put water stains on the table, and then….after many clicks, I started to get a photo that was pretty darn close. See photos above, left and right of Carole. By then I was standing tall in my working boots, smiling.
Am I proficient in manual settings now? No…not yet, but I have learned to look at life in a new light. The magic of light (and steam), how it dances and evokes mystery, more than anything, I started to look at photography with a different intention.
I apply this same intention with my writing too. I read Kathryn Aalto’s book Writing Wild: Women Poets, Ramblers and Mavericks who Shape How We See the Natural World, enjoyed it so much, I joined an introductory writing class with Kathryn (Katy) and the English Shepherd and author, James Rebanks. Since then, it’s been one class after another and mentoring along the way.
With Katy’s direction, I started to feel a subtle shift, a light and clarity in my writing process. Instead of saying “I can’t do that”, I think, “how can I do that?”. Applying that train of thought to photography and other areas of my life has been transformative.
So, I can’t fault Mr. H and the many years it took him to get onto a pair of snowshoes. When we are ready we are ready. Once you start to say “I can and I will”, well, the possibilities are endless. I may not be perfect at any of them and that’s ok. Knowing I tried feels good.
I wonder…
I wonder if this sparks any thoughts for you. Do you have things you would secretly like to improve upon? Any tasks underway to do so? Would love to know your thoughts…please feel free to leave a comment or drop me a line here. If you left me a comment last week, please see my last post for my reply. I loved hearing from you all. If you haven’t heard from me yet, let me know. I hate to miss anyone!
For you…
I found this great new app called Pocket that allows me to save all sorts of things in one place. It’s a game changer. From my Pocket to yours…
Every once in a while, I need to read this, 30 Life Changing Lessons to learn
What that saying about when a door opens?
If you are stuck and are wondering what’s next in life, Diana of Third Act Quest, is offering a transformative six-week “Living Forward” online workshop. Diana hosted my first Tahilla Gatherings workshop at Tahilla Farm in 2019. The attendees still call themselves “The Tahillians”. I love that! With Tahilla Gatherings on pause due to the pandemic, online workshops are the way to go. Diana is a ball of energy and has a gift for helping you find where you need to go and a plan to get there.
If you want to improve your appearance on Zoom, check out this
Have you seen The Dig on Netflix? It’s fab!
Winter weather is a drag on skin, I have a great product from Pure Fiji that I absolutely love.
On my last blog post, Notes from my kitchen table, I talked about books, if you missed it you can check it out here
If photography is your thing, see Carole Poirot’s upcoming Creative Photography Course
You can find Kathryn Aalto’s wonderful writing courses here
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And there you have it, a few things that came to mind over a cup of coffee today. With that thought, I want to thank you for reading along and your thoughtful and encouraging comments. I hope you found something in my words today that brought a smile or perhaps made you think about something new.
Until next time, take care, stay safe and think with intention!
Jeanne xx
