Autumn Evening at North Park

"Mom, Why have you stopped taking photos?"

The question from my eleven-year-old made me realize that I had indeed neglected my camera for many months.

"I guess that I've been too busy," I answered her.  That was a truthful answer as far as it went.  Moving a family of six from one hemisphere to another, supporting a spouse who first had to look for work and then start a new job, figuring out how to make our house work for the changed needs of our family, reconnecting with family and friends--my plate has been full with doing what I can to smooth the bumps and craters of the transition process for all of us.

But then so were the first few months that we moved to Australia.  I have since whittled down my photo library from 2010, but even so the number of photos I have saved from those first few months Down Under hovers around the 2000 mark. Rainbow lorikeets!  Seashells!  Crimson Rosellas!  Kangaroos and Koalas!  Flinders Train Station! So many new experiences to take in and document.

Moving back home is not quite so exciting.  There is less motivation to pull the camera out of the bag and see what there is to see.  And yet, one of the biggest benefits of photography as a hobby is not the documentation of extraordinary events, but rather the new eyes that it gives you to find beauty in the everyday moments.  So I have told myself day after day as the camera remained in the corner.

Last night, for a change, I grabbed it as I headed out with all four kids in tow.  After dropping the older three at a youth group that meets Sunday evenings at our church, J and I headed to one of my new favorite places in Pittsburgh, North Park.  If you asked me five years ago, I would have said that North Park was a decent destination, but a bit dull and tired, not really worth the drive from our house.   I have changed my mind after walking there lately. With each five mile circuit I have completed around the park's man-made lake, I have gained increasing appreciation for its beauty. 

Last night it seemed especially beautiful.

 

My companion was patient as we wandered, and I happily clicked away.  He uncharacteristically volunteered to pose for a photo or two, and even made a couple of suggestions for shots that he thought I should take.

His patience lasted about the same amount of time as the daylight, and just long enough for me to catch up with a friend whom we ran into as we walked back to our car.  We spent the last minutes of the twilight at a nearby playground, something this youngest child doesn't get to do very often, and then we looked at each other with the same thought in mind: ice cream!  We took our time savoring the waffle cones, spending some of our time together in silence and some of our time listening to the Piano Guys and discussing our favorite pieces (he likes "Cello Wars" and my favorite is "Kung Fu Piano: Cello Ascends").   There was also time for some conversation, much of which was centered around his current interest, the human body.

"Mom, did you know that babies are born with 300 bones?"

"Mom, I think I have damanged my esophagus." (He has been coughing the past few days and fighting a "raw" throat).

We also discussed muscles at some length, the relative importance of the brain to the heart, and the function of the kidney and the liver.  For a kid that claims to hate school, I was glad to hear that he is at least paying attention during the science portion of the day.

Later he surprised me even further. "Mom, I want to start reading the Bible.  Can you help me read Exodus?"  This from a child who also claims to hate reading.  You can believe that I have followed up on that request.  Exodus may not seem like the most logical place to start with an eight-year-old, but start there we have.

On the drive back home I considered that this rather ordinary Sunday evening, one that I had been dreading since it involved lots of driving and waiting around, had turned out to contain more than one extraordinary moment.  The transformation started, I think, when I decided to take my camera.

 

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Comments

[Annie Hofler]

Christie,

I love your photos! My favorite is the 2nd one -- the red berries stand out nicely against the leaves and twigs.

And I love that you say transformation happened when you decided to take your camera along. I have found that simple actions can lead to substantial changes; it's especially gratifying when I can identify the shift, as you have, and choose it again when opportunity arises.

Enjoy the beautiful fall weather and colors!

[Christie]

Thanks for those comments, Tina. I hope you are enjoying this great weather in your neck of the woods as well.

[Shanda]

"one of the biggest benefits of photography as a hobby is not the documentation of extraordinary events, but rather the new eyes that it gives you to find beauty in the everyday moments." This and your closing line---SO true. What a beautiful night....J is so cute and what a blessing that he wants to read the Bible! Exodus does have a lot of excitement in it, anyway.

[Christie]

It is a blessing. We have read up to the tenth plague now, and yes, there is lots of excitement in the first half of Exodus. As for the benefits of photography, I learned about finding joy in the everyday moments from you.