Rest for your soul...

In spite of the post-Christmas doldrums, there’s something I love about January/February…it’s the time of year when I get to pursue some personal projects!  The photography business gets a little slower-paced, and I have a little more time to refresh and renew those creative juices.  Honestly, the whole slow-down thing hasn’t quite happened yet, at least not the way I hoped; I got sick a while ago with The Cold That Won’t Go Away, and for the past six weeks it’s intermittently reared its ugly head.  So I’m still catching up, finishing one last big (and wonderful) project—Austin and Jenna’s wedding.  (Stay tuned for more of their photos soon!)

Anyways, one of my lifelong simple joys, as you already know if you’ve followed this blog for a while, is the beauty and variety of flowers.  Actually it’s not really a “simple” joy.  They’re tremendously intricate.  And detailed.  And unique, and amusing, and whimsical, and comforting, and just…beautiful.

Growing up surrounded by the many varieties in my mom’s garden, it would be hard not to develop a special affection for these lovely expressions of our God's creativity.  Think about it—each flower was once just an idea in God’s head.  He’s showing us something about himself in these pretty little things.

So last Sunday when I was at my parents’ house, I took some time to wander around the garden and collect a few flower photos.  It’s been at least a month since I last did that, and oh my, it was such a treat!  A garden is a haven for the heart—a place where your soul can rest and drink in the refreshment of its unique beauty.  Hope you’re refreshed by these too…

 

 

It's Daphne time!  Love their sweet, citrusy fragrance.

 

 

 

Little blue rosemary blossoms

 

I popped my head in the greenhouse too...

 

Just look at this pansy-face.  Doesn't that make you grin?

Till next time, friends!  :)

- Kelsey

Discovering beauty... 

Kelsey Schweickert  |  San Francisco Bay Area wedding photographer
Visit my website  |  Email me  |  Follow me on Twitter  |  Like my photography on Facebook

Margin. And some pretty autumn photos.

Here in the San Francisco bay area, winter comes late...so although a pretty little Christmas tree is currently gracing my living room, it still feels perfectly natural to have pumpkins around and an orange-berried wreath on the front door!  (Uh-oh, decorating faux pas!)

The last month has been more full than any other month I can remember in years.  Mostly a good full.  I do love my work!  But creativity suffers when the schedule is crammed...can't be creative when my brain gets tired.

Much of this activity has been unavoidable.  Moving is a big undertaking (especially when you work out of your home), and work must go on, along with a lot of other commitments.  But it's only for a time.

As things have calmed down a little, I've been working on creating a little bit of "margin" in my life.  I can't work well if I'm frazzled and worn out.  Jesus promised he would give us rest if we come to him and "take his yoke" -- not being lazy or wasting time, but receiving real REST for our souls -- refreshment, talking with him, enjoying being with him, taking delight in the good things he's put in our lives, and yes, taking care of our physical needs like sleep and exercise.  He doesn't intend for us to take on more than we can handle. He's the one with the supernatural powers, not us!  :)

So on Thanksgiving weekend I wandered around outside for a while with my camera, taking in the pretty late-fall setting, letting my landscape-photog instincts come out and play.  I find it both relaxing and stimulating to wander like this...there's always beauty to discover, and this time of year it shows up especially in the little things.

Love the wavy edges of this calla lily leaf...

 

Fall = pomegranates!

Baby stock plants...they'll have beautiful, fragrant blooms next spring...

 

Chinese Forget-me-nots

 

Still a few little basil plants in my mom's greenhouse...

 

Purple asters spilling out of this big blue pot...so carefree...

Here's to enough "margin" in your life and mine...especially with the busy-but-wonderful Christmas season upon us!  :)

- Kelsey
Discovering beauty...

Kelsey Schweickert  |  San Francisco Bay Area wedding photographer
Visit my website  |  Email me  |  Follow me on Twitter  |  Like my photography on Facebook

His yoke is easy

Happy Monday, everybody!  And hey, "happy Monday" is NOT an oxymoron!  :)  I woke up to sunshine coming through the window, a day filled with the work I love, and the health to do it...what's not to like?  ;)

See, I've been sick for a few weeks.  Again.  Grr!  I don't get sick like this.  It was some sort of bronchitis, a deep chest infection, the kind where you spend all your time in bed because you just don't have the energy to do ANYTHING else.  Not even watch movies or read books.  I coughed all night and slept all day.  My chest hurt and my voice sounded froggy.  And when I did get better enough to watch movies and read books, I quickly learned to avoid funny ones, because laughing set off the coughing again!

I'm still coughing a bit, but I'm awfully happy to conclude this unplanned hiatus from normal life (and blogging).  I've gotten behind on pretty much everything one can get behind on, haha... :P  Honestly, I was behind before getting sick, but now it's reached such epic proportions that I'm really kind of beyond worrying about it, if that makes sense.  I'm just working through the tasks as I can.  Everything will get done...all in good time.  I just don't have the health to push too hard.  No more late-night photo-editing sessions for a while!

OK, moment of honesty: in spite of the nuisance, it was good to be sick.  God had something He wanted to talk to me about.  No, He didn't want me to be sick and hurting and tired, I pretty much brought that one on myself!  But the situation was most convenient for Him to raise an issue with me.  He is never so near as when we are at the end of our rope, for whatever reason -- whether we brought it on ourselves or not.  And He wanted some time with me.

All my adult life I've struggled with over-committing myself, taking on too much, trying to squeeze more out of a normal 24-hour day.  (For that matter, I was always busy when I was a kid, too, just ask my mom.)  As if the Creator of both me and that 24-hour day didn't know best!  But no, I pack those 24 hours like sardines in a tin, with similar results -- things come out of that tin kinda squashed.  And I end up exhausted, bogged-down, burdened.

I'm pretty sure that's not how He meant life to be.  I'm pretty sure there's no Bible verse that says, "He leadeth me to exhaustion; He runneth me ragged."  That's not His design for us.  He says "my yoke is easy and my burden is light."  He knows what He designed us to carry.  Would the creator of a fine Swiss watch try to use that kind of clockwork to drive a truck?  Not likely.

Instead...resting in Him.  Giving Him my schedule, my time, my strength, my willpower.  Slowing down.  Stopping not just to smell the flowers (hey, I do plenty of that already...and then photograph them!) but to talk to their Maker and enjoy His presence.  And releasing my heart to Him in that moment, inviting Him into it, and giving Him control over my day.

Why?  Because He knows what will make me happiest.  He knows what He created me to do, and what I can do in a day.  And His companionship throughout my day is what makes any job come alive.  Like Brother Lawrence in his kitchen -- even if he was just washing dishes, he was in the presence of the Lord of all the earth, enjoying His company.  His presence sweetens any task.

So I've begun to break the habit of taking on too much.  My loving heavenly Father is the one who should get control of my schedule.  I'm leaving time to breathe...to play the piano, take a swim, whatever.  As Matthew West says, in this song I recently came across, to "Stop the World" and have some time with Him.

I'm learning to set down burdens He doesn't intend me to carry, and to come to Him...and find rest for my soul.  His yoke is easy, and His burden is light.

- Kelsey

Discovering beauty...

Kelsey Schweickert  |  San Francisco Bay Area wedding photographer
Visit my website  |  Email me  |  Follow me on Twitter  |  Like my photography on Facebook

Something to un-Monday your Monday

My dad is a hummer.  He randomly hums fragments of songs throughout the day.  I could always tell when dad was home because I'd hear his happy humming outside as he put away his bike and headed into the house.  He hums anything -- whatever comes into his head.  Sometimes it's something grand like the final chorus from Les Miserables; sometimes it's a silly nursery song that got stuck in his head from hearing the little kids at their piano lessons.  I love hearing my dad hum.  You never know what's going to come out, but it's invariably uplifting.  :)

For a long time, one of his favorite songs was an old hymn, "Like a River Glorious".  I haven't heard that song in a while but yesterday it popped into my head.  So I thought I'd share part of it with you, along with these photos from a recent trip to Oregon.

Maybe you're having a Monday and you need it un-Mondayed, or maybe you need some of God's "perfect peace and rest" for whatever reason.  I've been tremendously busy lately editing photos, designing multiple wedding albums, doing portraits, meeting with brides, planning photo sessions and weddings and classes and many other things and...yeah, I've definitely needed his peace this weekend.  And He always, ALWAYS comes through for me.  He's not joking when he says, "I will never leave you, or forsake you."  He's completely in earnest.  "Not one word has failed of all his good promise."  He is utterly, perfectly, gloriously faithful.

Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace,

Over all victorious in its bright increase;

Perfect, yet it floweth fuller every day,

Perfect, yet it groweth deeper all the way.

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest;

Finding, as He promised, perfect peace and rest.

May your heart be stayed upon Him today.

- Kelsey Schweickert

Discovering beauty...

Visit my website  |  Email me  |  Follow me on Twitter  |  Like my photography on Facebook

Big Basin Redwoods with my FPC Berkeley friends

It seems that I'm proving the truth of that saying, "The faster I go, the behinder I get"!!  ;)  I love my job -- lots and lots -- but sometimes I schedule my life as if days were 48 hours long.  ;)  I hate to sound like a broken record (some of you are too young to know what that is anyway) but I'm working hard catching up on stuff.  And trying not to kill myself in the process.  And aforesaid stuff is getting done, slowly but surely (uh, with emphasis on the "slowly"!).  :P

So.  Speaking of trying not to kill oneself.  In the midst of such busy-ness and over-zealous scheduling, I think we have to be even more careful than ever to feed our souls with beauty, rest, and time with Jesus.  So, I went to the Big Basin Redwoods State Park recently for a couple days of camping with some friends from First Presbyterian Church in Berkeley.  It was a blast!  My camera (i.e. my right hand) came along, and had some fun right there with me...and I leave you to judge the results.  :)

Moonlight and stars above the meadow

We ate well.  Like, the kind of food a lot of people don't even normally get at home, and here we were, camping!  Brett, you're an amazing camp chef!

Saturday's breakfast: crepes.

Fresh orange juice

Brett coaching Rachel on crepe-flipping.  She took to it like a natural.  (After some rather interesting landings, of course...hehe...)

Two at once?  No problem.

 

Rachel, you did a great job!

Koob on the beach.  I've never played Koob before.  Neither had most of us, I think.  Never knew it was so much fun to try and knock down little 3x3" blocks of wood! 

Our opposition, planning their next move... (Buuuut...guess who won...??)

Jessica, an expert marksman

WE won.  Somehow I neglected to get a team photo, but here's our MVP!

Lisa, roasting bacon over the fire...it turned out great, btw...

Evans and his guitar

Ahi!  Yummm!

I love huge campfires that big groups can gather around like this.  Good times, friends!

Had to do a quick star-trail shot, of course.  I think it came out pretty well...just in time, because the moon was about to appear over the horizon.

Some slightly goofy light-painting followed.  ;)  Here's Rachel:

And some of us girls trying to put on our band faces (epic fail, but we had fun trying)

Tim's very cool YMCA

Sunday breakfast was omelettes.  Here Rachel and Jess are preparing to attack an omelette of Biblical proportions.

Friends :)

Brett and Erica, I really enjoyed getting to know you!

Evans led some wonderfully thought-provoking discussion on desire.  (Hey Evans, I still want those notes!)  The last Bible passage he left us to ponder was from Psalm 37.

I've always loved Psalm 37, and the following verses have been very meaningful lately too.  Here are verses 4-6:

Delight yourself in the Lord,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;

trust in him, and he will act.

He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as the noonday.

May you delight yourself in him today...and may he give you the desires of your heart.

- Kelsey Schweickert

Discovering beauty...

Visit my website  |  Email me  |  Follow me on Twitter  |  Like my photography on Facebook