So, yesterday I announced an exciting addition to Mary Fields Photography services with the official launching of Mary Fields Mentor Sessions. I am so very excited about this because I love helping others avoid the mistakes that I made as well as encouraging them in their own journeys of self-employment.
Well, as I was thinking about this new venture, I started to think about the days when I was in that very spot...you know, the excitement of starting a new business matched so equally with the terrifying thoughts of 'What in the heck am I doing?!?' It's all such a beautiful roller-coaster and just like those theme park rides, it requires guts and a lot of faith. I can still remember the first blog I started and how incredibly nervous I was to even put my work out there because woah, what if people didn't like it?!? Yet, my friends kept nudging me to be brave and start a photo journal of sorts to share my thoughts and my images with others. As I've been working on this new project of mentoring other photographers and business owners, I began to remember that first blog and how it was nothing fancy or special but oh, how it remains special to me. It was a monumental risk that I took, one that required so much courage, and it proved to be one of the most defining moments in my career.
I looked back on that blog this morning and just smiled to myself. I can remember picking out the original background and at the time, I was particularly fond of peacock feathers. (Don't judge, it was all the rage). So, duh, I snagged a photo of peacock feathers online and made it my background...you know the way it would multiply it for you to cover the whole thing? Oh dear. I'm having a super sentimental moment right now and also doing a face palm at the same time. Yep, that was my background and of course I had my head shots taken with a peacock feather in my hair. Again, face palm. Funny though, because as I browsed through my old blog, I remembered just how important those peacock feathers and humble beginnings were. My work wasn't award winning, my blog was decent at best and my words had a naive youthfulness attached to them. Yet, it was special. It was bold. It was courageous. It was honest. It was me trusting the Lord to use my passions and gifts to honor Him. In fact, these were the words that I wrote as I launched that very first blog, "This blog is a leap of faith for me as I can't imagine why anyone would really care what I have to say or be remotely interested in the pictures that I produce, but at the urging of a couple friends, here goes nothing.' Oh, how honest I was. As I look back on that blog and as I look forward to helping others in their pursuits, I smile at the way that 'nothing' has been one of the biggest 'somethings.' It has been a wild ride and I know I'm not yet off the roller coaster. However, I am thankful today for humble beginnings and peacock feathers because oh how they have shaped me.
So, in the name of peacock feathers and humble beginnings,
I Say, Take Me Back!
Here is a snapshot of me wearing the infamous peacock feather. If you want to peruse my first blog (it'll probably make you laugh and embarrass me but you know, that's ok!) you can check it out here.
Jimmy and I also had lunch with a peacock while we were at a winery in Italy and it made me smile thinking back on how important that animal was to my business. Insert 'crying laughing' emoji. So, of course, I took plenty of pictures it.
