More weeks of being on one foot have gone by. As a photographer this has not been a fun time. So today I thought I would share some thoughts on that.
I am an administrator for a local photography Facebook group. I have enjoyed being a part of getting people out of their comfort zone by putting together a Gallery Show and Competition last November. The group has grown, and the people in it as well. It is a wonderful thing to see and know that I have been a part of it.
Personally, it is a different matter. Because of multiple surgeries on my foot last year, I am a bird with clipped wings. I have tried focusing on the types of photography I can do one-footed. I have enjoyed macro-photography in the past and have plenty around the house to shoot. But in the end, it really is a mindset. Where do we get our creativity from? A brief look on the internet, and this is what I found:
“Don’t go hunting for it as though it were a single entity. Creativity emerges from a variety of mental process and has no precise location.”
Arne Dietrich, Psychology Professor
This is true – in the brain, and in ourselves. Over the last year I have changed. Simple things like I was usually the driver, now I am driven. I planned and had every event at our home, now things are spread out and letting others take the lead. Just two of a number of things I have noticed.
Now, is this just the normal evolution of parents aging, children growing up? I am sure in part that is very true. But then I look at the evolution of some people I have known. My mother is a perfect example. She started as a draftswoman, opera singer, drafting engineer, and minister. My father’s list is even longer, so is it no wonder I am drawn in multiple directions? And where does the parent/child part come in?
Then I had an aha moment! For me, that long list of different things I do is my saving grace. So, due to my foot I can’t do the type of photography I enjoy the most. Instead of fixating on that, I moved onto something else. What have I focused more on?
One thing is knitting. OMG the old lady thing!!! Not anymore 😊 We have a weekly knitting group that the wild child and I go to every Saturday morning. I am learning, getting better and better all the time, and I love it! I have made some pretty cool stuff over the last year.
- I have a 3-year-old grandson. Because of the surgery last summer, I spent a lot of time on the couch with him – reading, watching TV, having wonderful conversations, and the best part – cuddles!
- I recently took a calligraphy class. Now finding time to practice has been hard. But it is something I have always wanted to learn to do, and I will get there.
- Also, I didn’t stop photographing. I shot my first wedding last August with the youngest as my second shooter. In October I shot a conference in Kentucky with my son-in-law as my second shooter. And last month I photographed a venue in Chicago with the wild child’s help. The photography is still there, it has just changed in the pecking order and how I do it.
- But even better – I am spending so much time with the people I love <3
For me it seems that if one thing hits a roadblock, then I just divert to something else. It works for genealogy, why not for life. Oh yeah, there is another interest I can do off my foot 😊