While all of the family went to church, little Eliza and I held a mini-photo shoot because she is just. so. precious. One tiny little week old.
I rummaged around through my closets in search of some textures and colors and fell in love with this baby pink scarf. Isn't it perfect?
The irony of how I, myself, looked, and of how my home looked as I was taking pictures of this beautiful little scene was humorous to me, and part of me wished I had turned the camera around to snap a picture of the disheveled mess of real life.
But instead, I found sweetness in creating a little piece of beauty right in the middle of all the chaos. I moved the cereal bowls and boxes from the kitchen table to the kitchen counter, and I moved the milk there, too. Because sometimes putting the milk in the fridge seems like going the extra mile. I wiped the dried eggs and syrup off of the table with a warm washcloth and kicked all the shoes and crusty bread pieces out of my camera's sight.
And then I put a sweet, white basket in the center of the space I had cleared. And I filled it with soft fabrics, and pulled my favorite arrangement of flowers to stand beside it.
I didn't pretend that the chaos wasn't there, just there, all around me. I didn't pretend that my teeth were brushed or that my hair was silky and clean. I just focused on the beauty that was right in front of my eyes. The little smile, the tiny fingers, the perfect nose, and the sweetest, milky skin.
And I felt blessed.
This is the perfect example of how you harvest beauty amidst the chaos of life. Social media is often criticized for only showing the perfection which leads to comparisons, personal insecurities and lack of self-worth. Your photos and narrative here show how our perspective can acknowledge the crazy of life, but also recognize the glimmers of beautiful and perfect in everyday moments.
ReplyDeleteJust some thoughts as you're preparing your remarks for the conference. This is the perfect example of "harvesting beauty" ;)
One more thought-- I think we as consumers of social media need to have a mental shift away from comparing ourselves to influencers or feeling less than perfect to finding our own moments of perfect. Of course you would want to capture and share those moments. Not for others to feel jealous but to share beauty and joy. What if social media was simply a tool for exchanging joy and beauty? We are each responsible for our own emotions and reactions -- we can each be more cognizant of our own mental shift and response to online interactions and engagement. Choose beauty -- choose joy and happiness -- and then share for others to experience similar responses.
ReplyDeleteI don't know why I have all these thoughts....Or why I'm randomly sharing them here. Take or leave ;)