Celebration of Growth

(The OshKosh Dragonboat race - This boat of rowers celebrating their fight against cancer. It was an awesome, inspiring moment that provided me growth of the soul, heart and mind just to have experienced.)




We've been asked to do a celebration....of our growth this year...with everything Kim has provided us with and all I can think of right now is how far behind I am on all the inspiration she has taken time to provide me with.  Such a bad student, I feel.  My own fault....or I could put part of the blame on her because she has inspired me so much, I signed up for other courses...all running at the same time...going in different directions...and not year long ones but four and six week long ones..still all running at the same time.

But...I smile.  I know winter is right around the corner and there will be time...to catch up.  Actually I see a little light in November.  Maybe even a start this next week...or next weekend when I take a girls trip north to rest and relax.  That should bring some type of down time and further inspiration.  (shhhh...don't tell them I plan on using them and our time together for many blogging opportunities)

Next
I've grown in my editing in PSE.....able to add textures and text over and above what I have done in the past.

I'm learning Lightroom now and definitely have fallen in love with it.  Taking the 'RoundTrip' to learn how to do exactly that...Lightroom to PSE and back. Can. Not. Wait. to have that under my belt.

My time capsule course....I want so much to finish and that is my goal for the next couple of weeks as after that it won't be available and it needs to be the one that I don't extend availability on....for now. I put a slide show together to share last week and couldn't get it uploaded to my blog here...for whatever reason so now...I need to go into the class more in-depth over the next week and get it up...because it is about Fall and I hate to think I won't get it posted until Winter. (uugghhh  and ggrrrr)

My blogging course was awesome and I followed it up with Make it Sparkle.  So filled with so many ideas. Now...to find the time to 'just do it'.

I have grown in a couple of other ways also.  I discovered the power of 'The Artist's Way' and it has given me so many opportunities in my photography passion which is part of what has kept me from the courses (also resulting in mixed feelings of where to spend my time..which passion... how can I get to them both because I want to do both....photograph....blog...travel....garden.)

In the past, I have not had much liking for the color white.  Past experiences of white cabinets in kitchens and bathrooms continuously needing cleaning with children and pets and just humidity and stickiness of Houston environments.  Cussing...claiming that these could only have been invented by a man.  Yet, this year...I found a new love for white (thank you to the one and only Kim Klassen) and am now trying to figure out which room is going to be the best to turn into My Whiteroom.

Along with the new love of white...has come a somewhat new love for bright lights....as long as they are not on me.  Many people wonder about my sitting in rooms with not much light.  My office at work has huge windows...tinted yes but....as far as I am concerned in the middle of the day, I much prefer that natural light coming through the window than that overhead flourescent light that just doesn't seem necessary...after all the computer monitor is lit.  But I have discovered the awesomeness of 'light' as related to photography and love those where I can capture some bright light..although it is normally still from that wonderful 'light' the Dear Lord has blessed us with.

I've grown in my attitude, my awareness (still needing work) but getting there.
My self esteem is slowly creeping up.

Next year.  Next year will be great. I've learned so much this year and still have more to learn as I play catch up.

And today, I think I actually do 'Trust the Process' just a bit more than I did ten months ago.