Thankfulness Photo Challenge ~ Week 4
In a few days I will be wrapping this challenge up and while there is a part of me that is excited that's almost finished, also kind of sad to see it end. It has been a great experience and to be honest, not something I thought would make it all the way through. When I started the list only had around 12-15 items on it and I wasn't sure if I could find 30 separate subjects to illustrate through photography. A few of the ones I started with I either deleted or changed, but in the end I was able to complete this challenge with 30 separate things I was thankful for. Granted I still have two more days to finish but I already know the topics that will be covered and excited to share them once I have. But for now here are the photos from Week 4:
A little over eight years ago my nephew was born and it was on the greatest of my life. I was still living in Colorado at the time so I didn't get to meet him until he was 4-1/2 months old but I fell in love with the little guy before he was born. Which is actually when he got his nickname, Worm. When my sister was pregnant she wanted to wait until the delivery to find out the gender and it felt wrong referring to the little one as "It." When she came out to visit me for my 29th birthday she told me the little one was about the size of an apple and I jokingly told her she must have swallowed a worm and from that moment on I've called him my Little Worm. I missed most of the first two years of his life because I was living out West while he was living here in Georgia but I wanted to be apart of his life. I made a promise to myself that I would find a way to move back home before his 5th birthday, and thankfully I was able to a couple months after he turned 2. There days when he drives me completely nuts but I'm so thankful that I've had the last 6 years to be a part of his life and watch him grow into the handsome, smart, little character that he is. Here are a few other photos that really capture his personality:
I look forward to Thanksgiving every year, especially since I've been living with parents because it's the one day of the year I'm guaranteed the chance to cook dinner. This year was extra special because in addition to cooking I got to spend time hanging out with my mom. I worked a little extra hard this year because I wanted to make sure that everything was as perfect as possible and happy say that in spite of a few hiccups it was. I started out the day playing with Max and fixing snacks for my dad so he could munch on stuff throughout the day while he was waiting for dinner. Even made a list to make sure I didn't forget anything. Thankful for the quality time I got to spend with my mom this year, that my dad really liked dinner, and even though it required a lot of extra work that the dogs scarfed down their sweet potato surprise.
When I was living in Colorado one of the things I enjoyed doing was hiking with the pup. I'd grab my camera and together we'd go and explore nature through the lens. The last few years I haven't done much hiking but still love getting out in nature. Although now I prefer running on the trails instead of hiking. But this year I decided to get back out there on Black Friday and explore somewhere new. My first destination was a bust (ended up being on private land) so I did a quick Google search on my phone and found Old Rope Mill Park in Woodstock. It's primarily for mountain biking so didn't hike on the trails as originally planned but still had fun, and even managed to get a few cool photos out there:
It seemed appropriate to highlight the business on Small Business Saturday, and in a lot of ways it fits that the blog is being updated on Giving Tuesday because thankful for the non-profits who have helped me with the building the business. I discovered The Edge Connection (http://www.theedgeconnection.com) in August 2014 through my supportive employment career specialist at Briggs & Associates (http://www.briggsassociates.org). Both organizations have helped me a lot over the last few years. I founded the business in 2008 as way to honor my grandfather's memory. He passed away a week after my 29th birthday, which was the last time I saw him. That night we got into an argument about my job because he wisely knew that I was willing to settle for a job that I didn't care about it but he wanted more for me than that. For as long as I can remember Pouli (my grandfather) alway told me that the day he started teachings was the day he retired because the next 30+ years that he taught never felt like work. He wanted me to figure out what I was truly passionate about and then find a career that would fulfill me as much teaching did for him. Shortly before my 30th birthday I lost the job we had been arguing about and I didn't know what I was going to do. But the long drive to Denver (where I was going to spend a week for my birthday) gave me plenty of time to think. And it was that drive that made me realize I needed to find a way to pursue photography as a profession. The Edge Connection helped that become a reality. Through their program I learned how to create my business plan, launch as a LLC in April 2015 and led me to joining Toastmasters last year. Also thankful for Briggs & Associates, who have stuck with me over the last 5 years and the continued support they've given me.
Sunday was a rough day. It was also the first day I missed because as much as I wanted, I just wasn't in the right frame of mind so I decided to skip it. Monday morning I woke up after not getting much, if any, sleep. But instead of rolling over and trying to go back to sleep I decided to try to take photos of the sunrise. Unfortunately, it didn't happen which was more than a little frustrating. I was outside and it was dark one minute and the next it was light but because of where we live, the sunrise wasn't actually visible so I missed it and the photos I took that morning didn't turn out so I scraped them. But it turned out to be a good thing in a lot of ways because it led to me taking the camera with me when I took my mom to the Senior Aquatic Center.
I'm thankful for Mom because even though we don't always see eye-to-eye about a lot of things, I know she cares about me and supports me in her own way. Especially thankful that she's still around to drive me nuts because we came very close to losing her when I was a teenager. Really glad she's still around because it also means that Worm gets to know his grandparents, which something I wish I had had the opportunity to do when I was younger.
Monday was a chance to start over. I may have finally broken my streak, and while I was little frustrated about it, it gave me the chance to appreciate the opportunity for a new beginning. I've had several chances for a new beginning and thankful each one of them. Truth is, every moment of our lives is an opportunity for a new beginning if we want them to be.
The first time I changed my hair color was when I was working at summer camp as a counselor. A group of my fellow counselors were doing and asked if I wanted to do it too. Which is how I ended up coming home with purple hair. It was the first of many colors to come. I've been fortunate enough over the last few years to have a several employers who were ok with the fun hair colors. A while ago I decided to mainly focus on either blue or green in my hair for the same reason that those are the colors of the company logo, even though most people don't realize it. Green = Mental Health Recovery and Blue = Autism Awareness (as is the puzzle piece cut out)
And that wraps Week 4 of the Thankfulness Photo Challenge. I'll be wrapping up the last end of this project over the next days and looking forward to sharing the images with you once they're completed. Stay tuned for the last installment and I hope you've enjoyed both the images and the chance to learn a little more about me and how HNC Prints Photography came to be. Until next time I bid you farewell.
