Oh hey. Here we are today. I was going to dive into more night photography for today's post but I am waiting for some special gear to arrive. More on night photography in the days ahead. If you haven't checked out the free live course on Creative Live, Night Photography Week, it's a great class that runs free all week. Did I mention it's free?

That leaves today. Are you like me and feeling a bit lost in it all? It's hard to see progress being made when life can seem like a bunch of falling leaves falling off a perfect, beautiful tree. No mater how desperately we try to place the leaves back on the tree, it's never going to happen. That's life. Things fall apart. Things don't work out. People leave. Things are sad. Opportunities lost. Seasons change. Like a computer trying to save a huge document, sometimes life doesn't seem to be making progress as fast as we need or want. The saving bar hardly moves. We wonder if we should just shut down and turn off. Sometimes it's refreshing to know we always have the option of quitting anytime.

However, in these moments it's the act of creating that can stop us from quitting. Today, I had a moment when I just thought "What is this all for?" "This might be it. I'm too tired to create anything. I would rather just go sit on the couch and watch television." Then I looked around at my absurdly messy office. There are stacks of illustrations everywhere. 259 days ago I didn't have one. No, not a one. As I searched through my photos today, I realized I have taken thousands of photos over the last nine months and continue to learn the art of photography. Most importantly, I have made connections and listened to stories of what creating means to others. I realized that if I turned off the computer and walked away, I would never know what happens next. I had a falling leaf moment.

Today's project is to use a leaf to symbolize how to reframe perspective. Pick up a leaf or a few outside. Grab a Sharpie marker and use the leaf as a surface to doodle. Now hang up the leaf in a place as a reminder of how reframing can help us keep going. Fallen leaves can never be placed back on a tree but it doesn't mean they can't blow in the wind.