Discovering Our Everyday World in a Whole New Way

Not long ago, I was enjoying a rare relaxing Sunday afternoon in my wonderful and private secret garden when I had a bit of an epiphany.

One of the many things I enjoy during these quiet times and looking through the hundreds (if not thousands) of photos that I have amassed over the last three decades.

I happened upon one grouping that made me smile and the warm memories washed over me like a gentle breeze. It was back in 2010 when my youngest child, who is now a college graduate, was still a middle schooler. He was at the age when he still appreciated awe and wonder and sought those things out every chance he could.

While sitting outside Saturday in the beautiful sunshine, little "O" asked if he could just take a couple of photos with my camera. "Sure," I said.

After 40 minutes of being MIA, I began to wonder what exactly happened to my boy? I went to investigate.

Soon I found him still taking photos and discovering his everyday world in a whole new way.

As I was going through the photos I just loved the idea that he experimented with several self-portrait attempts.

In this last photo can you find the bird? He discovered camouflage in its truest sense and felt he was carrying a very important secret. 

I loved looking at his photos and learning about discovery in a whole new way back then, and even more so now. I always considered myself capturing our memories but it wasn't until new eyes took over the lens that I realized it's also about discovering everything around us.  

I think this realization also applies to how we view ourselves. So many of us (me included) run in the other direction when a photo opportunity arises or we insist on being behind the camera in front of it. Maybe it’s self-doubt or lack of self-love, or many it’s just that we’ve been looking at ourselves for a lifetime and are just tired of what we see.

What if, during this month of love, we work on capturing our memories and looking at ourselves with new eyes? What if, as my son did so many years ago, we look at ourselves with the goals of discovery and remember what makes us uniquely special?

So for the next few weeks, I want to encourage all of us to not only see the amazing world around us with fresh eyes, but to also look at our magically beautiful selves with love, appreciation, and pride.

Let’s adjust our hypothetical lens to see all that is right with ourselves and not what is wrong.

Who’s with me?!