Blogging
isn't my forte as some of you may have noticed. It's difficult for me to
look back at 2011 and write about all these amazing things I've experienced and
lessons I've learned. Part of the reason is that I'm not a great writer
and the 2nd part of it is that I had a year of a lot of little experiences and
lessons.
2011
began what many people call "being settled". Mike and I had
moved to Memphis and settled in our apartment a few months earlier in late
2010. We met great people then,
and continued to meet great people throughout 2011, but we had a great
community established. We don’t
have kids, no pets, no more schooling…for now. We were settled. We are settled. For some reason the word “settled” has
both a positive and negative connotation to me. The positive connotation is the feeling of being able to
exhale! Ask me about my year at the end of 2010 and this would be a different
story. We’ve arrived. We have a place, a car, there isn’t an inevitable “goodbye”
hanging over us. These things are
good. But the negative connotation
is the feeling of being stuck. The
feeling of looking back and saying, “What did I do?” “Where have I gone?”
However,
one thing I’ve learned is that this is the real deal. This is the true test.
Where do I stand? Can I
still tell people about Jesus when I know there’s not a support group waiting
to hear about it back home? Do I
still love those I can’t just shut out when I want to? Am I still a good friend and neighbor
when I don’t hear motivating lectures about how to love more than once a
week? The honest answer to these
questions, is that it’s hard. It’s
super hard. I can’t honestly say
that I’ve excelled in most or any of these things. I have a lot more learning to do. And whether they’re big lessons that slap me in the face or
multiple little ones that I have to learn over and over again, I know that I
serve a God that doesn’t give up.
He hasn’t given up on me. Or on you….if anyone’s out there reading this.
So
what do I see when I look back on 2011…
-a
faithful God
-great
friends
-a
great church
-good
time with family
-a
husband that loves me for reasons I have yet to find out
-gifts
that God has given me the opportunity to use and enhance
-a
forgiving God
-lots
of laughs
So
what does this all have to do with my photo business….everything and nothing :)
I
guess I did have one big event of 2011…I started a business…it’s called
Gretchen Shaw Photography. You may
have heard of it. This journey is
not nearly over. I Definitely
learned a lot of little and some big things in the whole business arena. I made some dumb mistakes, conquered
some fears,….I hope I brought smiles to peoples faces, and I had fun! A photograph is a powerful thing. I still believe that and I look forward
to more powerful moments in 2012.
Here
are highlights of 2011. A Big
Thanks to all the great people in these photos.
Here’s
the FUN part: Go to my Facebook
Fan Page and VOTE ("like") for your favorite picture! The winner will receive an awesome
and large Gallery Wrap!
Contest
ends Friday the 13th at noon!
