Are You Seeing Fireworks?

“Listening” from the Connection Collection

I realized back in my teens that disappointment was only a reflection of my expectations. It was one of those personal aha moments.

It was empowering to know that how I experienced the world, events, people, and even myself was of my own making.

Now, I do my best to remember that I always have a choice – between love and fear, acceptance or judgement, resistance or allowing.

We create our experiences! 

Nothing outside ourselves makes us feel, think, or do anything. We’re responsible for how we feel and how we choose to experience the world.

Are you feeling disappointed in anything or anyone? How have your expectations created that disappointment?

What expectations are you putting on your partners, co-workers, children, service people, other drivers, the weather?  How is this detrimental to you? To them?

This photograph, now available in my shop, reminds me of the joy of creating my own experience, even in bad weather.  Great symbolism there!

I was taking a spiritual workshop on a cruise to Alaska with photography projects at every stop. Although I had lived on Vancouver Island shortly before that, I had never gone to the world famous Butchart Gardens at night to see their fireworks.  I was looking forward to it.

I’m lucky. I don’t usually let myself get affected much by weather.

At this stop, I was rather grateful for the effects the rain added to the gleaming sidewalks and lit gardens.  I especially liked the clear umbrellas that the garden staff handed visitors so that they could still enjoy the gardens and fireworks.

The crowd was hopeful, but alas, we only got a smoke show that night.  Still, I had fun with silhouette shots of spectators and their clearn umbrellas.

On the way back to the cruise ship, I decided to create my own firework experience.  I sat in the front seat of the double-decker bus and took long exposure shots of the traffic lights as we drove under them.

When I got back to my computer, I had fun superimposing my crowd shot and traffic light shot. Voilà, my own fireworks. Yay!

I love the reminder and energy of this photograph. Can you feel it?