Okay, so I told you about my quest for some tumbleweed table decor…only to be less than amused at how painful they are to capture. Learned the hard way on that one.
So I was thinking it might be time for a metaphor….starting a photography studio can kinda be like picking up a tumbleweed for the first time. At first it can seem so sweetly cliche’ and fun and you just want to own one of your own (well, at least this NW girl did). Then after you go for it, you realized it wasn’t what you thought it would be. ‘Wrote the words below in seat A20 on the way home after a very emotional last day for all of us at the Windmill Ranch.
* * *
As I sat in front of the sweet retreat friends on the last day in Texas, there was a little more electricity in the air than there had been.
We had begun to venture into a deeper territory…a place that sometimes can take a few days to reach. We were there and I was getting choked up reading my favorite quote by Rainer Rilke
(you know the one if you’ve been with me while on this MPG journey).
It’s about “living into the answers”.
As I looked at the now familiar table of bright faces, I saw that they knew exactly what I was talking about. Some not having taken risks before to lead them to bigger and better places in their lives… Some who’ve clearly been dating a new concept, and some ready to make some major changes….ready to shake it up a little. This electricity that hung there, even just for an hour or so, was so incredibly exciting to me that it seemed my heart might burst out of my chest.
I’ve been in that place…
where you’re scared to death to cross over from comfortable and familiar to changes/new destinations/eliminations…to decide with conviction that you really can’t let the brick on your chest remain in position anymore ~ to once and for all, make a commitment to your weary self that you are worth taking that extra hour a day to make plans for creative dreams…BIG ONES that could lead you down incredible, amazing paths.
Teary goodbyes at retreats are so good–they mean that concentrated inner reflection happened and that it could lead to changes for the better. I am waiting in anticipation to hear what these lovely women (and two men!) will do with photography and their newly ignited creative spark, whether it’s in the portrait studio business or in their own creative past times. I’m hoping that there will be some major “living into some answers” and that it will be a joy just to
befriend
the
questions
now.
What about you? What answers are you hoping to live into? It’s a big question..but worth asking, I think.
OX.
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Oh, Lara! How wonderful to hear that you met and found one another on a heart level. And you have so much more to share than shutter speeds… your TRUTH will surely fan the flames of their brave hearts as they live into their answers. Wow! Sorry I missed it… but you made me feel like I was there. xoxoxo
The picture of you with the stickers in your fingers is priceless! Reminds me of when I was a kid and I grabbed on to this old rope on a swing that had pretty much turned to splinter, it stung and we spent what seemed like hours picking the tiny pieces out! Taking a new road can definitely be scary. I used to feel so unsure about my work because of what I perceived some of my Art professors wanted from me or “thought” was worthy of being called “ART”. Criticism is different than help and some people don’t know how to do it properly. A wise person said recently that the process should be about what pleases me and not others. That has made all the difference in the world! Do you think Picasso or VanGogh cared about critics? Thanks for being an inspiration and good luck to all your students!
Oh, Laura…you are so right. The brick has been thrown away and my heart is listening.
Thank you so much for your inspiration and your big, big heart that was so gracious and warm to my family.
Big Texas hugs to you for the friendship you extended. There are no words to express the depth of my gratitude. You are an awesome woman.
Here’s to living into the answers!
xo, Tina
Following a medical scare that helped clear my intentions, it is really about living the love of the moment, being in a present state of grace and so grateful. GH & B