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Tuesday 29 November 2011

Through the eyes of children

I have just returned from spending four days caring for my two wee grandchildren while their mum and dad took a well deserved break. There was little time for contemplative photography or contemplative anything really! However, I did manage to make some images. Needless to say most of those images include a small child or two.

It was a special time and I feel priviledged that I was able to give them my time and love. As their sole carer over this period I also received all their love and attention which returned anything I gave in multiplies.

This morning as I prepared to leave my mind naturally turned to the demands of life and work and I realised how little I had thought about this over the past few days. I reflected on how watching these little ones live their lives as if every moment was something unique and special also encouraged me to do the same. Whether is be observing a bumble bee on the window sill, the excitement as they chase each other around the garden on their bikes, seeing the ducks in the bay as if for the first time and the cuddle given to the favourite toy at bedtime, each moment is special.  Seeing the world through the eyes of children for just a few days has given me more appreciation for my world.

Friday 25 November 2011

A New Way of Seeing

Next week my journey as an arts therapy student comes to an end.  It has been a wonderful journey with many challenges bringing insights along the way. I am now on a journey to develop my arts therapy practise but without the demands of study I can also start a new creative journey.

My new journey is a photographic one, an exploration into contemplative photography, mindfulness photography or a new way of seeing. I plan to use this blog to document my process and reflections as I go.

This is my first image that marks the starting point of my journey.  I have been doing some work with mandalas but mainly through drawing. I am also taking part in an online course 6 Degrees of Creativity and I have been doing one of the lessons for   6 lessons for  a happy artist's life entitled "Look for the good, see the beauty around you".  I decided to take at least one photographic image each day for a week that would be representative of a natural mandala. I took my camera with me on walks around my neighbourhood and my garden. I wasn't sure what I would do with the images but I knew I wanted to combine them somehow and this is what I came up with. 


Reflection
Creating this images brought positive feelings at several levels including:
  1. First taking my camera for a walk (my dog felt pretty good about this part too!) - exercise and fresh air
  2. Stopping to notice the small things - mindfulness of my surroundings
  3. Capturing them on camera - practising my skills
  4. Playing around with the images to create my multiple mandala image - learning some new skills
  5. Completing it - a sense of achievement.
  6. Sharing the image with this group and some other friends - sharing
  7. Receiving the lovely feedback - taking in the good