2016 Not All Bad

Oh my, first week of a brand new year.  Do you think we can do better this year? Carol wrote of plans and possibilities, Leigh chose her "word" for the year. Me, nada. I have tried resolutions, failed, and I have tried choosing a word, that also was a big failure. A couple of years ago I chose compelling as my word for the year....take more compelling photos, write more compelling stories. I personally thought it was a great word, but I do believe that year I took less photos and wrote less than any previous year, so again I say, big failure. Whatever my intent I tend to lean, no not lean, fall in the wrong direction. I admire those that choose their word of the year with intent and I am in awe when someone actually carries out their resolutions.  That old saying "can't teach an old dog new tricks" is true for me when it comes to "words" and resolutions.

In recent days we have all heard and read about just how bad 2016 was. I can't deny that as a whole it was a pretty rotten year. Good riddance 2016 seems to be a mantra for many. I won't rake us over those burning coals again, but what I would rather do is mention a few good things that occurred in 2016.

1) Since I am from the Chicago area, number 1 is the Chicago Cubs finally after 108 years of losing, won the Baseball World Series. It brought tremendous joy for so many that had waited so long for this win.

2) In the US the high school graduation rate is at its highest and the teen birth rate continues to fall. Good news for our younger generation.

3) Unemployment in the US is at its lowest rate in 10 years. And even with "Hamilton" tickets "starting" at $525 per seat, we still gave to charities, with 2016 being the highest year yet.

4) In  health news, researchers found new genes that may help cure ALS. (a dreadful disease). Don't let anyone tell you that throwing a bucket of ice water on top of heads doesn't help fight a worthy cause. Measles has been obliterated in both North and South America and West Africa is ebola-free with an experimental  vaccine that has proven to be 100% effective. Hopefully 2017 will bring news that researchers are finding prevention and cures for cancers and Alzheimer's.

5) In conservation news, the tiger population rose for the first time in 100 years. And Pandas are no longer an endangered species. Hurray for lions and tigers and bears oh my. And our feathered friends, the kakapo parrots, were at one time almost distinct with only 126 left. Now their population has grown to 1541. There was some good egg laying going on.

5) World news brought us stories that Columbia after fighting their government for over 50 years has finally struck a peace deal with Juan Manuel Santos leading the peace talks. Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in bringing this long overdue peace. A big shout out for Juan. Can you imagine the Civil War lasting 50 years?

6) In other world news Pope Francis the head of the Western Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Russian Orthodox Patriarch Krill met together in Havana, Cuba. This is the first time in almost 1,000 years that a Roman Catholic Pontiff and a Russian Orthodox Patriarch have met. Suppose they smoked Cuban cigars while they commenced their meet and greet? \

So you see, not all of 2016 was filled with bad news altho I will admit that having Princess Leia and Tammy die within a day of each other was quite heartbreaking. Here's to all the good that will come from 2017, God bless us everyone.

"Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a
better person." ~ Benjamin Franklin

Word of Intent

by Leigh

Connect

verb

     bring together or into contact so that a real or notional link is established

     join together so as to provide access and communication

     to establish communication between

     to join, link or fasten together; unite or bind

And so it begins....another year....a fresh 365.  For the last few years I have chosen a word of intent rather than setting myself up for failure by setting a resolution.  I use my word to guide my daily photo meditations that I post on Instagram (#loveleeokc_connect2017)  

My words in past years:

2014 BE

2015 FOCUS

2016 SIMPLIFY

I take some time to think about what intention I would like to set for the new year.  Sometimes it comes to me right away while other times it needs to mull around in my brain and on my heart before my intuition kicks me and says...that's it! that's your word!

This is one of the years that I'm going with the first word that came to me.  And that word is connect.

There are so many ways for me to apply it in my life.  I want to connect with others.  I want to connect with my body, mind and spirit. I want to connect with my camera.  I want to connect with nature.

I intend to connect with others by putting down the devices and listening earnestly to what they are saying.  I want to have genuine conversations. I want to invite a friend for coffee to talk about what's on our hearts and minds.  I want to cook a meal together with my children without the distraction of iphone or television.  I want to go to dinner with my husband on a regular basis so we can have real conversation and not just a "hello, how was your day?" in passing.

I intend to connect with my body, mind and spirit through meditation, movement and giving my body whole and natural foods.  

I intend to connect with my camera by continuing my one little word instagrams, taking some online classes, and working to build up my Stocksy port. 

I intend to connect with nature by getting outside everyday and engaging all five senses to keep me grounded.

How about you?  Have you chosen a word for the new year?  I invite you to share your word with us in the comments, on Instagram or on our Facebook page or by posting your photo in our Flickr pool.

Look Around

by Carol

Time, time,time

See what's become of me,

While I looked around for my possibilities

It's a New Year! 

Have you started looking around for your possibilities? 

Is there something that you would like to learn this year? 

Is there a place you would like to expose yourself to? 

Or is there a favorite place that you would like to know even more thoroughly?

Is there someone you would like to spend more time with?

Is there a job you would like to do, or a project you would like to finish.

Is there someone you could help? 

Is there a pet who needs adopting or a neighbor who could use a visit?

Is there something you would like to donate?

As we all know, if you look, you will see. 

Down by the riverside is bound to be a better ride than what you had planned. 

Look to nature for solace and for energy. Take a walk today to begin the new year. Experience the beauty that is there for the taking.

Look around. Leaves are brown. There's a patch of snow on the ground.

And the sky is a hazy shade of winter.

Hang onto your hopes, my friend(s)

 We at FOL wish you a wonderful, happy and healthy
2017!

(All italicized words are lyrics from"A Hazy Shade of Winter" by Simon and Garfunkel)

It's amazing to look back to 1968 with new eyes, and see that contemplative thinking was present even then; and I think always channeled by artists of all natures.

*Don't forget to look up to our header and read our new monthly focus - and please keep playing with us. It enriches us all!

Happy New Year!

by Terri

Just popping in here on a Sunday to wish you all a very Happy New Year!  I hope your holidays have been full of peace and joy and that, like me, you’re ready to get back to normal!  December seemed to fly by but I’m ready to move on to new things.

Speaking of new things, the other reason I’m here today is to introduce a few new changes to the look of the FOL blog.  You might have noticed that our header is a little different, with a new font, color and a new slideshow where each photo is featured on its own.  We thought you might enjoy seeing a larger version of these header photos and it gives our contributors a little more real estate to showcase their beautiful photography. I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I do.

We are also working on a few other tweaks that will be implemented near the end of the month in conjunction with our 5^th anniversary.  Wow, five years!  It’s hard to believe we’re still going strong five years after starting this little space and we hope you’ll continue to stop in and visit with us when you can. We always love hearing what you have to say.  So thanks for being here and cheers to a new year together!

A Time to Declutter

by Judy

I am blessed to be surrounded by so many Creatives.  Since the year began I have seen many of my friends talking about starting new projects, finding their "word," planning and plotting all of the wonderful creative things they want to do with themselves this year.  I must say, I'm impressed, but I feel a little bit like a slacker. 

You see, I find that January is the time of year that I need to stop.  Just stop.  I need to take a deep breath and just be. I've learned that I can't focus on beginning projects, heck, I can't even focus on planning projects yet.  In the past I have struggled to find my one special word to begin my new year, only to find myself kind of grabbing at the first one that sounded good.  Needless to say, that word and I never really connected throughout the year.  I wonder if I'm alone here?  Have any of you felt this way too?  Do you feel like you need to ease into the new year and relax and rejuvenate before the creativity can flow? 

My one little plan for this month is to declutter my mind.  I've cleaned and decluttered my house as I put away all of the Christmas decorations.  Now I can set forth on getting rid of some of the mental post-it notes and lists in my head. 

I've begun journaling again on a daily basis.  I'm not sure why I always stop doing this - it definitely helps me to clear my head, and ideas seem to really flow.  I am also trying to stop multi-tasking.  As a woman, a mother, and an employee, this is a very difficult thing for me to stop doing.  But as many of my FOL sisters have talked about in their posts, I feel that multi-tasking is keeping me from being in the moment.  If I'm juggling too many things at once, I'm not really putting my best into any one thing. 

I really look forward to seeing all of your 365+1's, and ALL of your creative projects, but for now, what is right for me, is to dust the cobwebs out of my head and just BE.   

A Brand New Year

by Leigh

Simplify
verb
     make (something) simpler or easier to do or understand.
     to make less complex or complicated;
     to simplify a problem

"Ditch the resolutions. 

To resolve means to find a solution to a problem.

You are not a problem.

The way you showed up for your life the past year

was necessary for your growth.

Now is a time to reflect.  To learn.

To create an intention, a positive call to shift,

a spark of magic + manifestation

rooted in self-love

and backed with action."

The quote above really spoke to me as I was contemplating my word for the new year.  I have never been one for resolutions preferring instead a single word.  Sometimes my word comes to me quickly and other times I have to meditate on it for awhile before the word finds me.  And I do believe that the word finds me.  Last year I had a difficult time making up my mind as I tossed around a few different words, but one kept popping up in books I was reading or quotes in a magazine.  But it wasn't until I was sitting in a movie theater when suddenly during the previews on the big black screen popped up one word in huge white letters-FOCUS.  And that settled it.  That was the sign I needed.  So 2015 was all about focus.

Last month the internal debate for my 2016 word began.  Just like the previous year there were a few words floating through my mind, but one kept popping up when I least expected it. As I  stumble upon quotes in books, magazines, Facebook or Instagram…I write down or screen grab the ones that catch my eye.  As I browsed through my recently saved quotes I started to see a theme and it was all about simplifying.  

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." ~Confucius 

What does simplify mean to me?  It means stripping away the unnecessary clutter both physically and emotionally.  It means to connect with myself and follow my heart.  I want to simplify the way I approach photography and get back to my feel good roots and trusting my instincts.  It means less multi tasking and more experiencing.  It means making myself a cup of coffee and settling down with a new book.  It means taking time in the morning to myself to meditate, stretch and set an intention for the day.  And most importantly it means spending time with my family without the distraction of technology and simply enjoying their company.  I hope that by simplifying my life I can feel an even deeper connection with myself and others.  How about you?  Do you have a word for the new year?  

"The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary 

so that the necessary may speak."

 ~Hans Hofmann

Off We Go

by Carol

Time to get to work!

 So it's a new year and general wisdom has it that it's time to reassess our direction. Frankly, I'm more of a "go-with-the-flow kinda girl" and that has served me well.   Jumping in has allowed me to avoid my usual over-cautiousness and to experience some wonderful people, places and things. If I think too much, I will think myself right out of those experiences. My job, and my life as a single mom, have involved lots of planning and lots of follow through. At this stage, I'm trying to follow my heart and my intuition a bit more - loosen the reins a bit. It's hard for me, but it's also exciting and often rewarding. But all the after-Christmas posts here and all over the net are making me feel a bit guilty. So I'm not much for the 5-year plan, but I guess I could attempt some review.

Thankfully, this is a store window - but I sometimes feel like this!

I am feeling that my photography is needing some general reorganization. I can see progress - but in disparate directions. I would like to focus a bit more, if you will excuse the pun. Last year's goal was to get more out there - in the shows, on the walls, on line. I also wanted to cull my entire Lightroom catalogue to get rid of the duds. And I wanted to keyword every single image from 2015 as I took them. I vowed to complete each on-line course I signed up for. 

Wellll......I did really well with the key words right through about October, but have some catch-up to do now (not too shabby!) I was in several shows, but let my website drift a bit, and posted a lot less to Flickr. (could do better.) I decided to start with 2014 and work backwards through my catalogue to cull, and only got half way through 2014! (Not so good.) I am sooo far behind in the classes I signed up for. (no comment)

But I am not beating myself up about these things. I find that everything in life teaches a lesson. I have decided for 2016 to continue the key-wording goal- that is really getting me somewhere. As for the other goals, they are really all a part of organization (or lack thereof). For 2016, I want to compartmentalize, and conquer! So I want to redesign my website to include only my very best - there's too much on it. I want to go back to posting the others - the storytellers, the travelogues, etc- on Flickr, IG and Facebook, where I get more interaction from my photographic community. It keeps me in touch. I plan to be much more selective about entering shows, choosing those I really relate to and being more precise about what I enter, and I may try some on-line entries. I want to get some of my work onto my walls, or at least in books so that I can enjoy my memories on a daily basis.

But I have realized that my true joy comes from the contemplative aspects of photography. I want to be out there, intentionally, for myself, rather than for the sake of progress. Photography has led me to some really wonderful experiences in the last 5 years, from France to Tucson to New England with terrific people who have become good friends. That's what it's all about for me. 

So instead of "onward and upward," I'm going to close with "onward and inward!" 

Happy New Year!

New Month :: New Year :: New Theme

by Dotti

Happy New Year!

Today is the first day of 2016. Can you believe it? I can’t but it does make me dream of all the possibilities that await us in this brand new year that lies before us.

I don’t know about you, but January is perhaps the month I dislike most. It’s long, it’s cold, and there are a lot of grey skies in my neck of the woods and sometimes (shudder) snow and ice. It’s also the month when my photography seems to suffer, I feel uninspired by what’s going on outside the windows of my home and I sure as heck am not going to venture out the door for too long during the cold weather.

So, what to do about it? How about a challenging new theme to start us off this year? Something like, oh, say, Faceless Selfies. The idea is that we will post photos that tell something about us but not with us in them. For example, in the lead photo, you can tell that I am a photographer. Yeah – I know. Big surprise.

In the photo below you’re able to figure out, without too much trouble, that I love reading and I love tea and they often go hand in hand for me. Again, not a huge secret around these parts.

But how about this one?

Yes, I do play the piano. Not well and not often, thanks to too many years of neglect, but I play. One of my goals for 2016 is to work at setting an example for my granddaughter (who dislikes practicing) and sharpen my piano skills. Trust me - they need a lot of sharpening.

Now, I’ve shared three things about me that I hope will help you get to know me better. Let’s spend the month of January getting to know one another better with Faceless Selfies. This is going to be a challenging one for me, I can tell you that right now. The three I did today came easily but that was the low-hanging fruit. Now I’ve got to really get creative and see what else I can share so you can get to know me better. And I must say, I’m looking forward to getting to know you better, too! Don’t be shy, we’re all friends here. You can use vignettes, mosaics, whatever you want. I can’t wait to see all the magic and fun in our Flickrstream and IG feed.

Before I go, a housekeeping note: beginning next week, Deanna and I will begin posting on Wednesdays and Focus on You will move to Fridays