“Back of the bread is the flour, and back of the flour is the mill, and back of the mill is the sun and the rain and the Father’s will.” So goes a table grace that I learned to sing at Girl Scout camp. Back of the photos that I post here is little ol’ me, with camera in hand, and often my companion on adventures, Steve. The challenge for this week is to Take a picture of yourself or someone else as a shadow, a reflection, or a lesser part of a scene, making the background, or — as in the example above — the foreground, the center of attention. Let’s see what I have in my treasure chest…
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Oh, and here’s another one…
Kind of a goofy shot…had no idea my stomach had crept into the photo, and hadn’t really thought much about the composition. I was standing in the middle of an antique/rummage shop, trying to take in all the bizarreness around me, not sure where to look. I am an observer, and often passive. I am actually doing a lot of soul-searching these days, trying to be more intentional about what I do with my life. I have a habit of looking around, appreciating everything and not engaging with much energy in any particular thing. It’s kind of a surrender-based position. Not that it’s bad; it can be useful at times. It can also be very frustrating for Steve who wants to know more about what I really want. I have a tendency to fade into the background: social conditioning? lack of self-confidence? fear of commitment/rejection/judgment? Not that I want to promote my ego, but I do want to attend to values with some assertion. If I don’t stick up for what I think is important, then my days will be incredibly dull and my life energy not very well spent. As I get into my senior years, I want to avoid slipping into the routine of enduring and not enjoying my time here. How do I practice that daily? That’s what I’m hoping to figure out.
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Kind of a goofy shot…had no idea my stomach had crept into the photo, and hadn’t really thought much about the composition. I was standing in the middle of an antique/rummage shop, trying to take in all the bizarreness around me, not sure where to look. I am an observer, and often passive. I am actually doing a lot of soul-searching these days, trying to be more intentional about what I do with my life. I have a habit of looking around, appreciating everything and not engaging with much energy in any particular thing. It’s kind of a surrender-based position. Not that it’s bad; it can be useful at times. It can also be very frustrating for Steve who wants to know more about what I really want. I have a tendency to fade into the background: social conditioning? lack of self-confidence? fear of commitment/rejection/judgment? Not that I want to promote my ego, but I do want to attend to values with some assertion. If I don’t stick up for what I think is important, then my days will be incredibly dull and my life energy not very well spent. As I get into my senior years, I want to avoid slipping into the routine of enduring and not enjoying my time here. How do I practice that daily? That’s what I’m hoping to figure out. 
scillagrace 
I am in a constant struggle to push myself out of my comfort zone, and I am always glad I did, and many of my blog posts are about little victories over my reluctance and fear, but I still have long way to go. Thank you for another wonderful, thoughtful post, as always.
My mom calls them “tiny triumphs”, but hey, the road to maturity is bedecked with many, right?
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We keep trying, Scilla! Sometimes we triumph, and sometimes we try-umph!
; D
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I like the shadows.
Thanks! And thanks for stopping by!
Good post Scilla. btw, you have an enviable svelte mid section:)
Gee, thanks! 😉
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Has it ever occuried to you that maybe what you are meant to look around, appreciating everything and not engaging your energy in any one thing?? maybe that is just YOU… and I love you for being you 😀
Actually, it has…and it makes me think of my son as a baby, contentedly watching his older sister, mom & dad, smiling benignly and playing with whatever was offered, never fussing if the thing was removed or replaced with something else. My mother pegged him as a ‘generalist’ when he was in high school…he’s pretty good at most everything, and was sometimes passed up by the “gifted” program standard bearers, but that is not a bad thing. In fact, it was pretty easy to live with! The caution I mean to keep in mind is that allowing myself to slip into passive routine and let my energy stagnate can lead to depression. Been there; don’t want to return.
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fair point Scilla and one which I understand all too well..
You did a great job with your in the background photos. The self portrait is really good! 🙂
Thanks, Roy! Those are my 19th Century undergarments – what I wear to work 2 days a week for the living history museum. The costume is really the focus; I’m something of a mannequin in this shot.
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Love the pictures and I wish I knew how to do the changing shots. My favorite is the one of the reflection in the old window.
Enjoy the weekend,
janet
The “slideshow” option in Create A Gallery is what gives you the changing shots. Compliments of WordPress; it’s not an upgrade or anything. Thanks for commenting, Janet!
Where do I find Create A Gallery? (Sorry for being so dim.)
When you’re in Add New Post screen, you hit the Add Media button. Then you get two options: insert media or create gallery. You select shots that you’ve uploaded in your media library, then hit ‘create a new gallery’ in the lower right hand corner. This lets you order the shots and choose the layout you want. Enjoy!
Thanks very much.
Just love the serendipity of your stomach showing up. Kind of makes this surreal. Both photos are gorgeous.
What a wonderful way to put it! “The serendipity of your stomach showing up.” 😀