May 16, 2016
When I was a child, I spent most of my time writing stories or drawing pictures, and in that regard, I have not changed much since those tender hours of youth. I still write stories—sometimes fiction, sometimes features for the local newspaper—and I still create pictures, only now I “draw” with a camera and Photoshop instead of a box of crayons. (Below is one of my recent “drawings” titled “Waiting.”)
Much like they did many years ago, these creative pursuits bring me purpose and happiness. One of my favorite childhood authors, L.M. Montgomery, once said that without an artistic outlet to channel her restless energies she would have suffocated like a fire choking on its own smoke. I do believe I am clipped from the same cloth—I must create, create, create in order to purify my active imagination and keep my beating heart content. (Below, another recent creation compiled from three photographs, titled “Star Catcher.”)
As a child, horses were the inspiration behind most of my creative endeavors and the axis upon which my dream world pivoted, so perhaps it is only fitting that equines occupy an honorary spot in my first blog. Back then, I was obsessed with horses, and when I wasn’t drawing pictures of them, I was collecting model horses, or reading horse novels, or watching horse movies, or even pretending I was a horse. The knees on my pants were worn through from crawling around playing “horsey.” But as much as I wanted a horse of my own, family finances and other practical matters did not allow it, and so the dream of horse ownership never came to fruition during my youth. (Below is a recent capture of a friend’s Arabian stallion. How can you not fall in love with horses when you see one as gorgeous as this?)
As I matured, the wish to own a horse remained, a glowing ember tucked away in the back of my mind on a bucket list labeled “Maybe Someday.” Thus I lived through several years of adulthood with that faded dream growing dimmer as new chapters unfolded, years passed and finances and practicality yet again made horse ownership impossible.
But then one day last fall all of that changed.
It was a mild October afternoon when a friend and longtime horsewoman telephoned to say she knew of a mare that needed a home—a mare that might be a perfect fit for me and my daughter. (I should mention here my teen daughter was also born afflicted with a lethal case of horse fever.)
The mare in question was free to the right owner, and our generous friend assured me that if we decided to take the horse she had room for the mare in her barn and the board would be free in exchange for my daughter mucking stalls. All we had to do was go and meet the mare and see if we wanted her.
After hearing this surprising news, I hung up the phone and sat for a moment in stunned silence. A horse. For free. For my daughter and me.
As I contemplated the possibility my 7-year-old self was grinning and doing cartwheels, but my adult self remained cautious. It all seemed rather unreal, after all, and I didn’t want excitement to end in disappointment. The next day, though, after meeting the mare—an appendix quarter horse of most gentle temperament, golden chestnut coat and large, knowing, kind eyes—we decided that she was indeed the right fit, and we took her to her new home and welcomed her into our hearts. It was very real! We had a horse of our own! Quite unexpectedly, the angels of the equine universe had smiled down as a horse had literally fallen from the heavens into our laps! Well, a horse did not literally plummet from the clouds, of course, but she did seemingly appear from thin air, and miraculously enough her name was “Amazing Grace” (better known as “Mazey”). After all those years, my childhood wish had come true—I owned a horse! And not just any old horse—a well-mannered, registered quarter horse who had been trained in dressage. I could not believe it, and several times I thought I might wake from a dream . . . but it was true, and here’s a picture to prove it.
Now that I have told you a horse story with a happy ending (although it admittedly took decades to reach that happy ending), I must shift gears and clarify that this blog is about more than just horses and the wishes of children. This blog is about faith, dreams, hard work, perseverance and courage, which I believe are five important factors in conceiving and maintaining not only a successful life but also a successful business.
I started Storyteller Photography: Images by Rebecca three years ago in 2013. I had minored in photography in college during the late 1990s, and picture-taking had always been a hobby, but when I ventured into transforming that hobby into a business, it was part of a process of reinventing myself that was born of necessity and sometimes desperation. Without divulging the gory details, let’s just say that in late 2007 my life was turned upside-down, and by 2010 I found myself a single parent with my feet on a brave, new and often difficult path.
I already had two college degrees—a bachelor’s in professional writing and a master’s in English—and through the years, in between being a stay-at-home-mom, I had carved a career as a journalist and college writing instructor. However, as I adjusted to life as a single parent, I found the rigorous deadlines of full-time journalism and the low salary and unreliable workload of the college adjunct often conflicted with or failed to adequately provide for the demands of my new lifestyle. I dreamed of building a livelihood as my own boss, setting my own hours, doing something I felt passionate about. I was still as passionate about words as I’d always been, and I was working on publishing my first novel, but I found that something else was calling me—that little girl who loved to draw pictures was prodding me toward the creative medium of photography. (Below is one of my favorite captures, taken last fall just as the first rays of dawn were piercing tree branches.)
The ability to capture images that tell a story, to be an artist who freezes time, to harness the magic of light, to snare the depth of someone’s character with the click of the shutter—I couldn’t get enough of it, and so in 2012 with the remodeling of my small garage into a photo studio, my plan to start a business was born.
I had a lot to learn, and one might say the odds were not in my favor. Photography is a highly saturated market, after all, and it seems everyone you meet is a photographer, or knows a photographer, or has a cousin or uncle or someone who claims to be a photographer ready and waiting to snap their pictures. I live in an economically depressed area, I have a small work space, and it wasn’t until last year that I could afford to acquire a Cadillac of cameras—a Canon 5D Mark III, which has enabled me to take my photography to a level I couldn’t initially. (Below is one of the first photos I took with my Canon 5D. I love the super-fast shutter and low-light capabilities of this beloved camera.)
However, despite the challenges and cards stacked against me, I have seen my business grow in leaps and bounds in the past year, and I have been blessed with exciting and surprising new ventures and new clients. Part of this is because I have worked very, very hard to master and improve my craft and to implement good business practices, but I believe the other portion of my blossoming success can be attributed to having faith in the possibility of dreams coming true and in believing God and the universe will open the right doors if I continue to have the courage to step forward and step through them.
It is scary to have faith like that, isn’t it? It takes constant practice and courage to believe in the possibility of things unseen, in seemingly unattainable dreams, in that powerful breeze that promises to carry you to your next destination when you sit becalmed in the middle of a vast ocean, sails sagging, with no land in sight. But if there is one thing I have learned in life it is that our thoughts do indeed shape our realities, and as trite as it may sound, if we believe it, and are willing to work hard enough, we can achieve it. (Below is another recent capture–the butterfly hints at unexpected magic and possibility.)
So here’s to five important pillars of success: faith, believing in your dreams, hard work and good business practices, perseverance and courage. I cling to all five and have found they are taking me places—they are the wind in the proverbial sails that power the ship toward exciting new ports.
So, if you find yourself at a crossroads in life, if you find yourself dreaming of a new path, but feel doubtful, do not give up! Hatch your plan, roll up your sleeves, get to work, gather your courage and have some faith. Some days will feel bleak, and sometimes you may have to wait patiently for the dream to come to fruition, but just remember that no matter how long it may take to achieve that goal, no matter what the odds are, you never know when that “Amazing Grace” is going to fall from the heavens and grant you that long-awaited wish, whether it be a horse of your own or a burgeoning business. Every time I doubt that dreams can come true, I just look at a photograph of Mazey.
I know I still have a long road to travel with my business and with my life—goals to meet, dreams to attain, stories to write, lessons to learn and photographs to take, but I will continue to work hard, do my best, have the courage to believe in possibilities. The late, great Maya Angelou once said: “Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.”
This is one of my favorite quotes because I have found it to be profoundly true. But more about that in my next blog. Thank you for reading. See you next time.