“LORD, what are human beings that you care for them, mere mortals that you think of them? They are like a breath; their days are like a fleeting shadow.” Psalm 144:3-4

Hello Love,

I’m so stinkin’ excited it’s ridiculous!

I’m blessed to be apart of one of the most amazing mastermind’s groups to date which, my lovely friend Carmen is host of.

She totally rocks!

I’m truly thankful and honestly in awe of God’s goodness. My mentality is changing and I’m also adapting and putting into practice what we are going over in our mastermind’s group because it resonates so deeply and is truly what I needed. I can not wait till I’m sharing with you some life altering perspective that I’ve gained in the few weeks I’ve been apart of this group.

God has been blessing our family in the most amazing of ways! I’m totally blessed to know HIM and I just wanted to take the time out to share a highlight of the summer and give you a fresh perspective in your own life, or at least Try. Our 4th of July weekend that is captured in the pictures, was our second time at the beach as a family. (Really it’s the third because Emanuel was in mami’s belly the first time! That counts right?)

You know, I never understood how important our perspective to life is. I didn’t understand, as I do now, the value that we ourselves give life by just the way we look at it. By just the way we receive and add to it.

I’ve been through difficult moments in my life, we all have been. I didn’t realize, until I’ve actually taken a step to actively change my somewhat “conditioned” mind. The mind that life’s circumstances conditions us to think through, that Wisdom is by far the greatest asset we can obtain in our lives, it’s also one of the greatest gifts we can instill in our children.

How to view circumstances, how to react to set backs and how to proactively “take charge” of one’s life.

Taking Charge! Wow! Today, I actually realized, in just pausing for a moment, on how much work I actually have to do, in order to become a better person each day. Praise GOD that I’m at a level of observation and awareness in my life. That I’m actually “measuring” my progress from who I used to be to who I am today.

I’m not the best person in the world, and hopefully it’s safe to say that I’m not the worst neither, or could that be ego?( I through that in there for kicks) Regardless, my point is that we, you, I never stop growing. Never stop learning and that until recently I have realized that Growth, personal, career, life, is intentional!

I actually thought that I didn’t have to be “intentional” about the way I reacted to circumstance or the way that I’d perceive my life’s moments. Now I see…the reason why the future is so unknown is because we actively create it it daily. By moments, by what and how we decide to look at life.

I’ve also learned that I have developed some note worthy habits in my own life. That, because of the few things that I do on a regular basis and practice on has lead me to where I’m at. Which Love, is a very good and real place.

I LOVE taking pictures. It’s one of my passions and it’s something I believe that when time permits, I may consider adapting as a hobby. Currently it’s just a leisure, nothing I take to seriously. A hobby, for me, is something I do that I love and I’m actively looking for ways to improve on.

That’s just my definition, not saying that it’s a true definition but just my perspective in what I call a hobby. I wouldn’t say, taking pictures is a hobby for me because I’m not actively trying to intentionally improve on it i.e. taking classes or reading books on photography. It’s something I just do.

That being said, because I LOVE taking pictures it has resonated a deep WHY, a life altering reason behind why I love taking pictures. My love of taking pictures has instilled and leads me to bring my camera out to any event capturing moments any chance I get to take some…well pics!

It allows me to look back on the moment in such a present non-judgmental way on two things.

1. What does the image say/portrays? And…

2. What I did actually feel or what was my attitude in the moment?

These simple yet profound questions allow me to re-adjust my perspective, my attitude and do “better” (act better, seize opportunities, or engage more) for the next time I’m in such a “moment“.

I didn’t understand how this has helped me enjoy each moment that much more, knowing that what is portrayed in the image can not be re-taken, re-enacted or re-lived.

(Because, for me, I believe the pain of not being able to go into this capture and hug my baby boy and cover him with kisses and feel the breeze with him can be so deep… but the knowledge that I get to see him today and do just that is such a beautiful gift, a second chance…)

It allows me to live each moment to the fullest, because I rather look back and KNOW that I seized the moment and lived it fully, then looking back with regret.

That’s one of the reasons that capturing moments and looking back at them, has allowed me to, instead of taking it each day by day.

I’ve learned to take it one moment at a time, to be fully PRESENT in my own picture because even this moment can be captured on that camera.

And if it was…did I feel deeply? Did I see clearly? Did I do what I could of to fully enjoy or make the best of the moment to make the best memory of the moment? Peace.

How blessed we are to wake up today and see the sky, feel the light on our skin and breathe the breath from the trees and wind.

YOU ARE ALIVE MY FRIEND!

Life is comprised of PERFECT, yes PERFECT moments. The perfect part is basically living that moment with the most LOVE that you can have in your heart.

And if it’s a hard moment, living it with the most FAITH, because I’ve learned that “this to shall pass“.

During hard or tough times, do you want to look back at the poor choices you made because of fear, or the excellent choices you made through PEACE which Faith gifts you?

It’s how we live each moment, Love. It truly is…

The picture of today will be in the past and what would be left of that image?

That’s the beauty of life, the experience. The breath of it.

It’s like taking a picture of an amazing gourmet meal you ate a year ago, that you can’t even remember if you fully enjoyed it but boy does it look DELICIOUS. Putting it on a plate in the present and calling it lunch.

You can’t re-eat or re-taste what has been. You can only remember, and hopefully…the next time you face a gourmet meal…You’ll enjoy it better than the last. You’ll give your all to it in that moment and you’ll forget about the “guilt” or the other negative emotions you may be tempted to bring in to “your moment” your time, during the meal.

Because, maybe, just maybe, you want to have the full experience…

xoxo