Lessons in the Weeds // news

The yard of our current rental house isn’t the most glamorous of yards. Since we moved in during the dead of winter, it wasn’t until these last couple of weeks that we discovered that the grass is patchy and filled with weeds. (And, we don’t have a lawnmower.)

The other evening, though, I was admiring how the sun was making some of the weeds glow. Of course, I grabbed my camera. All of a sudden, weeds didn’t look much like weeds (well, unless you're a weed expert).

There are times in our lives when we have an opportunity to find the beauty in the weeds. I’m all for that. I love doing that in my photography, and I try to live it out in my own life. Sometimes, we run into things we have absolutely no control over, and we have two choices: to sulk, or to find the beauty in it.

But there are other times when we have the ability to pull out those weeds. Sure, we could choose to admire them, but if they’re doing nothing productive to the big picture, why take the time to water them? Pull ‘em out. Get rid of them. 

I recently had some “weeds” in my life. It started as flowers. I made a goal to take a photo a day for each day of 2014. I started off well. I missed a day here and there but followed up by posting two the next. Then, things got tough. I tried pushing through it. I tried admiring the weeds. I tried convincing myself that it was good for me. But, to keep with this metaphor, I was focusing so much on watering what had become weeds that I completely neglected the rest of the lawn.

So I quit. I messaged Abbey, my accountability partner, and she had similar sentiments to the project. I took hardly any personal photos for the rest of April and much of May, and I felt so free. I focused on parts of my business and parts of my personal life that truly are priorities. Recently, I’ve begun taking a few extra personal photos to post to my Facebook, which I’ll continue to do throughout the end of the year (apparently the springtime has given me an extra dose of inspiration).

Maybe, one year, a project like this one won’t be a weed. Maybe it’ll really become a blessing. But, as I learned, 2014 couldn’t be that year. I could call myself a quitter, but instead I’ll call myself a gardener. Simplifying life in order to better experience it.

Here's to weeding!

- Abi S