No worries mate!

Do you ever feel like you had planned to accomplish so much more in a year and somehow time has just sort of passed you by? I started to feel that way this year. But then, when I finally gave myself a moment to really reflect on where I was last year at this time, and all of the plans that I had for the coming year, I've really accomplished more than I thought... I bet you have too - if you take the time to look back. Maybe that's what all of the year end blog posts are all about - catching your breath for a moment - reflection time!

So here I go... *deep breath*

Last year at this time, we were in the process of looking for a permanent home - which at the time seemed like an impossible task. I had just wrapped up teaching a four-day-a-week semester of teaching in Milwaukee and was feeling like my design business was unintentionally taking a back seat, and I hadn't been photographing as much as I had wanted to. The (feral) kittens that we had adopted that fall were just starting to come out of their kitty condo to explore the rest of the house, but were no where near letting us pet them.

Looking back, all of the fears and apprehension I felt about these things had been needless. My problems seemed to resolve themselves - we found a house that we love (with a little studio for Lily Red), I only teach one day a week now, I had an absolutely amazing summer full of second shooting opportunities, and my kittens are now snuggle-friendly and refer to us as, "mom & dad."

We also took as amazing trip to Australia to visit family, and I learned a little expression from the wonderful people there... instead of saying, "sorry" at the drop of a hat as Americans (or at least some of us) have a tendency to do, Australians say, "No worries!" - note, this usually followed by, "mate."

I love that expression! Reflecting back on what I thought were my worries last year, it looks like, "no worries" will be my motto for the new one.

Here are some of my favorite shots from our trip to Australia...

Bondi Beach // Sydney, NSW Australia








...

The Botanic Gardens // Sydney, NSW Australia




I spy Steve - in a reflective state...



These bats/rats with wings (scientific name - flying foxes) were hanging out in the daytime.
It freaked me out a little - I felt like I needed a racket and laundry basket...






...

Brunswick Neighborhood // Melbourne, VIC Australia
I loved the Brunswick neighborhood!
Check out this awesome interactive map to see the street view:
http://www.brunswickstreet.com.au/






National Gallery of Victoria // Melbourne, VIC Australia
I have to admit, I sometimes roll my eyes when I see people taking pictures in an art museum, but I really couldn't help it - I loved these sculptures and their placement in the gallery!


...and the subject matter and light in this painting (title: Anguish)...



Around Melbourne...
the morning sun reflecting off this building is having a crazy/awesome effect that I've never seen before!



Night view of the Yarra River // Melbourne, VIC Australia



...

Happy Holidays & No Worries for the New Year!

All before sunset

This last weekend Steve and I went away to Michigan - to catch up with each other and spend sometime enjoying the fall colors.

On Sunday, amidst a day of pumpkin picking and antiquing, our day took an unexpected turn. We stopped off at a local chili-fest and were there for about two minutes when we heard the band that was playing the fest abruptly stop. I heard someone next to me say "omigosh" as the crowd rushed to the intersection right next to the festival tent. We all looked - life suddenly felt like it was in slow motion - at first no one moved - we all just stood there - trying to piece together exactly what we were looking at...

Initially I thought a pedestrian had been hit crossing the street - he was laying about ten feet in front of the car - and he wasn't moving. About ten feet in front of him was what I thought was a piece of the wreckage - it took a few more seconds to realize that it was another person - a child. I looked back at the car - it's back windshield was shattered and a motorcycle was wedged underneath the back end.

Suddenly everything sped up - Steve headed to the man laying closest to the car to see if he could help -there were two other physicians there as well - they all took turns checking on both of them. I soon realized that another one of the people that was helping the child was his mother - she had been driving in a car behind the motorcycle - with their two other children.

As I stood there - in shock, helplessly watching, a man was walking in my direction and was leading a little boy away from the scene - as he passed me, I saw the little boy look over his shoulder and then turn to the man with him saying, "but that's my daddy..." my heart was breaking for him...

A couple minutes later the wife realized she didn't know where her other two children were and rushed to find them - as she was reunited with them - just feet from where her other child and husband lay, she hugged her other babies - I heard her crying out - "Please God, please..."

The paramedics arrived and started to administer CPR to the father - and Steve headed back to me - looking down and shaking his head.

I felt wrong for observing all of this - I was standing there - helpless - watching a family on the verge of falling apart - a wife losing a husband, a son losing a father...

We left - unsure of what would happen to the son and father... I think we both felt lost and shocked. What do you do with yourself when you know there are two people who just moments ago were enjoying the beautiful day and were now fighting for their lives? To go on with your day as planned just seems wrong.

We decided to go to the beach and watch the sun set. As we sat down we looked down the shore only to see a bride and groom, kissing & embracing - while having their pictures taken. It was a strange thought - to think that we had just witnessed a couple on what could possibly be the worst day of their lives and here was another couple - celebrating the start to their lives together - possibly one of the best days of their lives.

It was such a strange idea - that such sorrow and such joy could take place on the same day at the same time...

Another thought suddenly entered my mind - while on the one hand I am sometimes a witness to tragedy, losing loved ones myself and watching others lose those that they love, on the other, I am also very lucky - working in the wedding industry, I get to witness (and celebrate) with couples on the best day of their lives. How amazing is that?

The Sunset | Sunday, October 9, 2011

UPDATE: The father and son that were in the motorcycle accident are both in critical condition - please keep them in your thoughts and prayers...