no explanation needed. well, perhaps a small one.

31 January 2010–I made it through month one, and am about to change the rules on myself. Editing this page, and also my approach to this project. Who knows, maybe I’ll edit it every month.

When I started this, I thought I made it up, the idea to take a photo, or use one word to mark the day. That lasted for about ten minutes. The misconception that I made it up, that is. But my intent was to do a blog without explanation, and let the photos, or the words, speak for themselves. I wanted to see if I could let them just sit, without judgment or worry.

So I kind of sucked at that part. Within a few days I had to add titles to the photos. Then I found myself writing the story in comments (someone would write “lovely” and that gave me all I needed). And I would post it on my flickr page, and write about it there. Or on my other blog, Tour of No Regrets.

This is what I have learned so far. Capturing a good photo and a significant moment, or even the significance of an ordinary moment is hard. It takes constant awareness, courage, magic and some skill. The first three show up here and there for me…the skill is going to take more work. This is somewhat stressful, cumbersome and silly. It’s time consuming and sometimes time-wasting. It also encourages me to really pay attention and notice what’s around me. Not necessarily how it feels, but just what it is.  For the month of January, I may have one really, really good photo, a few really bad ones, and many that are pleasant reminders to me, of my days.

So I will keep at it for February. It’s a shorter month, you know.

This is part of what I wrote in this space last December. It’s still relevant, so it stays. The rest, it changes.

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I’m a storyteller deep in my DNA, and my first blog, Tour of No Regrets, was/is an experiment to see if I can create a story out of the small moments of my day. But sometimes it gets out of hand, and isn’t always appreciated by my family (though they are generally humored and supportive).  As my youngest daughter has said, more than once, “Mom, just because you think something, doesn’t mean you have to say it.” This blog post in particular made her wish her mother had a little more self-restraint. I also really appreciate being able to get the last word in any argument, and I don’t think it would hurt me to turn my editor up a notch.

My work blog, re:design, is a way for me to find other people’s stories, and share those. It’s newer, and has led me down paths and provided opportunities and connections I hadn’t imagined.

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Stories in the next chapter of life:served daily.