A Sentimental Reflection: Announcement of the New Site

I am an incredibly sentimental person. Like painfully so. My family always makes fun of me for having to commemorate everything…literally everything. When I left high school and moved to college, I had to have a ‘moment’ walking around the house to say goodbye. When I left the University of Oklahoma, finishing some of the sweetest years of my life thus far, I took an afternoon and walked around campus just so that I could remember. I drank in all of the sights and smells, dwelling on all that had happened in my time there. Right before I drove out-of-town last October and moved myself to Dallas, TX, I of course I had to go to ‘my spot’ on the dock and commemorate my years in Missouri. Call it weird and I wouldn’t disagree, but that’s me. Before I leave anything in the rear view, I need a moment to reflect. So today, I’m leaving this blog in the rear view but not without a time of sweet thankfulness and reflection.

I started this blog in faith on February 22, 2011. Who knew what exactly prompted me to do it as it was really unlike me, but I did. Maybe it was the nudging of friends and family to showcase my words and my pictures. Maybe it was the longing inside of me to pursue my dream. Or maybe, and much more likely, it was the Lord. He brought me to it and has shaped me in SO many ways through it. I have written so much, shared so much and grown so much on this site. It has been therapeutic, challenging and developmental for me and for that, I am incredibly thankful. However, over 100 posts and 18 months later, I am moving on to new things. This blog will always be like my first camera. A great place to start. A great thing to remember. A starting place that set me up for unbelievable growth. A blessing.

So, as the sentimental person I can’t help being, I take this moment to say thanks to all of you faithful followers for giving me some of your time over these last 18 months. Your encouragement and feedback has been life-giving! I hope you will stick with me! Thanks to all my family and friends for your faithful and unending support! If it wasn’t for your belief in me, I would not be where I am today. Last but certainly not least, thank you to the God of this Universe for loving me enough to plan my steps. I am oh so grateful for this past step and now for this next one!

That being said, I am now announcing the launch of my new website/blog at www.maryfieldsphotography.com!!!! Head over to check it out! Here’s to many more years of commemorating God’s goodness and the ‘world through my lens’ on this blog!

Happy Saturday!

 

The Craziness of Life and Exciting Things Ahead.

Life. Oh life. Sometimes you just have to laugh at its craziness. Otherwise, on hard days when all the gas pumps are out of order, your fountain drink from the gas station is flat, you are running late for a meeting and your ‘to do’ list is longer than your 5 year-old Christmas list…it will all seem too much. That is why I believe in the power of humor. The ability to laugh at yourself and all that is going on.

That being said, I will laugh today. Life has been crazy lately. Such a good kind of crazy though. I have been traveling, meeting new clients and making plans for the future! Most exciting on the horizon though, is the introduction of my new website/blog!!! Oh how this has been a long time coming! I have been making the last major changes on it these past few weeks and I can’t wait to launch it! God is so good and this is yet another instance of His faithfulness. Many long nights, frustrated moments, and LOTS of edits later…its nearly ready. The day it launches you are all invited to a celebratory party at my house! Complete with yummy treats, joyful dancing and squeals from yours truly… Ok, not really but it was a nice thought as I would love to celebrate with all of you. We can pretend.

Stay tuned for its debut but don’t worry, I’ll flood all of my social media outlets with the news. How could I contain it? Until then, here is a sneak peek from one of my first blog posts on the new site. Can’t wait to show you more!

Happy Tuesday!

Mary Fields Photography

A Special Place: Growth, Primary Colors and Giant Leaps.

It has been part of my life for over six years. It started in 2006 which feels like just yesterday. I was a nervous sophomore in college, unsure of what it would entail. My sister and I drove together from the plains of Oklahoma through the Ozark hills, reassuring one another that it was going to be alright. “We will be fine”. Secretly, we hoped that the other person actually believed it because truthfully…neither of us really did. We pulled in to the gates and I had to hug her goodbye, reluctantly releasing my safety blanket. My sidekick. Desperately praying in the car, I drove myself the rest of the way to my kamp (yes, I meant to spell that with a K) hoping that it would turn out ok. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out ok. No, it turned out wonderful. Life-changing. Monumental. Pivotal. Special. Invaluable.

My six summers at this camp, four in college and two on full-time staff, were sweet years that I cannot put a value on. I believe that all of life is a process in making us who we are to be but I also believe some serve a greater purpose to that end. Those years and that place are more precious to me that I can express so I won’t even try. Moving to Texas nine months ago and leaving the Ozarks in the rear view was without a doubt what was next in my life. I believe that wholeheartedly and refuse to look back. However, one thing will always be true. Deep in the Ozarks, tucked away in the hills, there is a little kamp on Taneycomo Lake that will always feel like home. The colors are red, blue and yellow. The houses are log cabins, marked by years of kids who wanted to leave their legacy, just hoping to be remembered. The entertainment is void of iPods, Wiis, Angry Birds and Halo, replaced with bows and arrows, canoes, and slip n’ slides. The fashion trend is mis-matched and make-up less with the coolest kids wearing crazy costumes that make no sense and at the same time make perfect sense. The forecast is somewhat unpredictable except generally mornings are crisp and the evenings are thick with humidity. The relationships built are life-long, even though so little of your life is actually spent together. You’d never know that though as those few weeks/months seem to carry more weight than years anywhere else. You see in this little world, the stage is one of pure and simple joy. Laughter is the soundtrack. Smiles are the wardrobe. Children and staff are the actors. But above all, growth is the story.

It’s a place where faith is cultivated. Wounds can be mended. Fears are overcome. Comfort zones are left behind. Leaps are taken. And lives are changed. Lives like mine.

I am so very grateful for that place in the hills and so I’m especially grateful that I get to spend two weeks there taking care of some of my favorite kiddos. I’ll be kid-sitting for a camp family these next two weeks and I am pumped! Thankful for a job that has some flexibility of schedule! I’ll still be working (wedding this weekend in Lubbock!) and updating the blog but it will just be intermittent with some cute little ones and crazy stories of summer camp! Here’s to places that make us take leaps of faith and conquer our fears!

Happy Tuesday!

You Bring Restoration.

“May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” – Colossians 1:11-14

Sometimes I become burdened to share things on my heart. Today is one of those days.

If you have followed the blog much, you will have noticed that I make no amends for my faith. In fact, I am blessed to unashamedly have this platform to share what I believe is true and what is worth sharing with anyone I come in contact with. So, either you will be moved by what I have to say or you won’t… and both are fine. Nonetheless, I will share on.

Yesterday at church was baptism Sunday. I haven’t been able to attend church the last few weeks as my crazy schedule tends to get in the way so maybe that’s why my heart was particularly moved. Maybe it was the fact that I am always moved when I watch baptisms…usually moved to tears. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s simply because I was reminded of how wonderful the gospel truly is.

One by one, people stepped into the little pool of water before the congregation and shared their life story. There were accounts of depression, loneliness, unsatisfying pursuits of perfection, broken homes, failed marriages and incredible emptiness. While each story was different, personal to each one of those who stood in the pool, one thing was consistent. Brokenness.

Every one of them told of how they had spent their lives missing something important. Needing to be healed. Needing purpose. Needing help. Needing more.

In the midst of the brokenness though, one other thing was also consistent. Restoration.

Through tears and smiles, they each shared their unique stories but also their very common resolution. They had found restoration in the name and grace of Jesus Christ.

As I watched them, I remembered myself in that water many years ago. It wasn’t in a little baptismal in a church but instead my pool in my parent’s backyard. The waters were different and yet… they weren’t different at all. In both, broken people who had been healed were publicly plunged into water in order to declare their association with Jesus Christ. Tears filled my eyes as I was reminded of the beauty of the gospel and witnessed the profession of each of those in the water.  The power of salvation is indescribable. No matter who you are, you have undoubtedly encountered immeasurable brokenness and the death of Jesus Christ offers healing. Redemption. What a reason to rejoice! After the baptisms and professions of faith, our worship leader got up and led us in the most perfect song. I thought I would share it with you, whomever would read this little blog, in hopes that you would be encouraged by the gospel of grace…for it brings restoration to the soul.

“You bring restoration
You bring restoration
You bring restoration
to my soul

You’ve taken my pain
called me by a new name
You’ve taken my shame
and in its place, You give me joy

You take mourning and turn it into dancing
You take weeping and turn it into laughing
You take mourning and turn it into dancing
You take my sadness and turn it into joy

You make all things new, all things new”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LcyQOLVS_U

( I was thinking that every post is better with a picture, but what depicts this well? Funny because actually the Bible uses marriage as a depiction for the restoration of man to God. How wonderful that I get to document something that is so symbolic of the gospel for a living! What a joyous occasion weddings are and that is so symbolic of salvation…our mourning is turned into dancing and our sadness into joy as we are joined with God. So…this image seemed fitting.)

On Days Like Today

99.9% of the time I forget how blessed I am.

.1% of the time…on days like today…I remember.

When we were kids, he’d tell us that ‘He knew everything,’ and of course we believed him.  He’d line us up on his bed and play the ‘tickle game’ which was a love/hate relationship. You would wait in excitement and a little agony just watching his every move to see if you were next to be tickled into oblivion. Every once in a while, he’d look at us with a gleam in his eye and say, ‘You know what you need? You need a MR. BEAR-SQUASH-YOU-ALL-FLAT!!!!” Then he’d tackle us to the floor and just lay on us…squashing us all flat. We’d giggle until our faces were red and we couldn’t take it anymore. At night, we’d sit around the dinner table and he’d come up with some crazy game for us to play. Spell or Define. Math problems. The Whistling game. You may think it’s weird but you’re just wrong…it was wonderful. Sometimes, he’d just pull us into his lap and hug on us, telling us he loved us…the sweetest words for a young girl to hear from her father. Words that have made me secure in myself even until today.

It simply is unfitting to honor him today though and not her also. She was the world’s best ‘stay at home’ mom. Why you ask? She did it without a hint of regret, selflessly sacrificing so much of herself to give us what we needed. She made our home a haven. She was and continues to be the hardest worker I have ever known. On Tuesdays and Thursdays my sister and I would trade off on going to ‘Mother’s Day Out’ and having a ‘Day with Mom.’ I always wished it was my turn for DWM. She’d create the coolest adventures for us, making our days eventful and fun. We’d do crafts, go see the pigs, make potpourri, go on bike rides, make up games in our backyard and so much more. Sometimes if we were lucky, we’d catch her before she put fresh sheets on the bed. Crawling up on the mattress before she tucked in the top sheet, we’d say, “Can you shake the sheets Momma? Can you shake the sheets?!?” Without hesitation she’d just smile and lift up the fresh sheet, shaking it as if she was laying out for a picnic. We’d close our eyes and wait for the soft, fresh, and clean sheet to fall on our little faces. It felt like a piece of heaven. All of my life, she has always looked at us and said, “Who loves you the most?” And I always knew who did.

You see, I am blessed beyond measure. I have the greatest parents in all the world. I’m sure your’s may be great too but I’m sorry to say, I cannot imagine how they could be greater than mine. I have never questioned their love for me and even now, as a full-grown adult, they remain my biggest supporters, comforters, advice-givers, role-models, sounding boards and care-takers. Now, however, as I have moved into adulthood, I am privileged to call them friends.

I realize that today is Father’s Day but since I did not get a chance on the blog to thank my mother on Mother’s Day, I’m taking the opportunity to do both. Momma, you are the best mom a girl could ever ask for. Daddy, you are the best father a girl could ever ask for. Please know that if I ever get the chance to be a parent, I hope I can do it even a fraction as well as you have. Thank you for ‘knowing everything’ and for ‘loving me the most.’

Happy Father’s Day and a belated cyberspace Mother’s Day!

She’s Crazy.

Sometimes people think I’m crazy. Sometimes I agree with them.

Ok, I’m not really crazy but I do lead a somewhat crazy life…and I somewhat like it that way. I’ve always been known as the girl that never stops, does too much, is always busy and says yes to everything. That’s me and I’m okay with it. For some reason being busy makes me feel accomplished, invigorated and fulfilled. I may change my ways in future years as I do have to admit that my stamina is waning a little, but for now it’s me and it’s life.

That being said, I have just finished an insane wedding season. 9 weddings in 8 weeks. Not to mention family sessions, engagements, rehearsal dinners, anniversary shoots, sister’s wedding, 5 states and many late nights. I know right? It’s alright, you can say it (or really just think it since this is cyberspace)…’she’s crazy.’ I’m not going to disagree with you. Life for me in the last two months has been a bit ridiculous but at the end of it all, I still LOVE what I do, I’m SO grateful for the way the Lord has provided such sweet clients, I made it through without too much mental stress and I only have one or two additional nervous twitches since I started. I’d say I’m doing pretty well. However, today marks the first Saturday that I have had off in far too long so I’m going to sign off and go soak up some rays. Drink in some Vitamin D. Have a lunch date with my long lost friend…Mr. Sun. So sorry cyberworld…but Adios Amigos!

In the meantime, please enjoy a sneak peek of the super fun bridal party I shot a few weeks ago. Looking forward to posting this wedding soon. I’m pretty sure I have made every one of these faces in the craziness of the last 8 weeks…yep, pretty positive this describes all of my emotions!

Happy Saturday!

Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?

“Have I told you lately that I love you 
Could I tell you once again somehow 
Have I told you how with all my heart 
And soul I need you 
Well darling I’m telling you now 
My heart would break in two if I should lose you I’m no good without you anyhow 
Have I told you lately that I love you 
Well, darling, I’m telling you now “

These were the lyrics my Granny would sing over us as children. Words that we sing to each other now and words that I cherish so very dearly.

If you have been a follower of the blog for a while, you might know about the Herd Bull and His Bullette. My wonderful grandparents that lead our pack. The patriarchs of our crazy but wonderful clan. As I was going through all of my pictures from the last crazy 7 weeks, I found these gems from my cousin’s wedding last weekend and had to take a moment and pause. I paused you see because I was suddenly hit by an overwhelming feeling of pride. Not the kind of pride that leads to a fall. A more humble, grateful, blessed kind of pride in the heritage that I have. Pride in these two people who have so very much shaped who I am and the world I grew up in. A world that was characterized by godliness, love and laughter. Words cannot even begin to express how much I love these two and how much I admire who they are. My family, though we have our quirks, is a beautiful assemblage and picture of what family should be. We owe SO much of that to the faithfulness of these two. Their love for our God, their committed love for each other and their selfless love for each one of us has created a heritage that I am so proud to call my own.

Thank you Granny and Papa for leading this herd so well. You are both a treasure that I don’t deserve. I simply cannot express the way your lives have blessed and shaped my own…in the best possible way. Have I told you lately that I love you? Well…I am telling you now.

Happy Tuesday!

My Granny is still as beautiful as ever.  

My Papa and I dancing at the wedding. He is way better than I’ll ever be. So grateful that he is back on his feet after a painful battle with cancer. God is so very good.

I know the one on the left is blurry but I still loved it too much not to show it. What a memory for me 🙂

Just short of 60 years of marriage and still dancing. Still in love. They had their first date when they were 12. Married at 20 and dancing ever since. What a picture of marriage that the world needs to see. So grateful for this example in my life.

Grateful.

I wish I had more time for an actual post as I have some fun pics I can’t wait to share with you, Cyberspace. Maybe one day I’ll have a dog and name him Cyberspace in your honor…Cspace for short. Hmm, it has merit. Sorry, sidetracked but it was an interesting thought. Anyway, I don’t have time for a full post as my sweet sister, the happy newlywed herself is on her way to town, WHOOHOO!, and so I must get to cleaning and preparing. However, as I was editing pictures yesterday of a recent wedding, I came across this gem taken by the ever amazing John Cain Sargent.

It reminded me of something I don’t ever want to forget. When I’m going bleary-eyed from editing, when I’m spending my Saturday at the chapel instead of the pool and when my feet hurt from standing on them far too long, I don’t want to forget. No, I don’t want to forget that most people don’t get to do what I do. They long for what I do. You see, because I do what I love. Truly. That my sweet cyberspace is what I don’t want to forget…to be grateful.

Happy Friday.

Marriage.

So recent events have got me thinking. Marriage. What a wonderful word that can’t even begin to express the depth of what it really is. Having never had the privilege of sharing in such a union, I know that my understanding is limited. However, having also had the great privilege of witnessing some incredible examples of marriage, I feel confident enough to say that the unity of a man and woman is unlike anything else. It is precious. Special. Ordained. Refining. Intimate.

Sacred.

I believe in this unity and I am blessed to be able to be a witness to so many covenants. In the midst of the chaos, the exhaustion and the stress of my profession, I feel so honored to document that significant day when a bride looks to her groom and says, “I do.” It is that union that is worth celebrating because it is set out by God, His plan…not our own.

As wedding season continues on, in the midst of all my craziness, I am grateful today to so frequently be able to join in celebration as a groom and his bride join in perfect unity.

Happy Friday.

(Mary Fields Photography)

A Little Pen and Paper.

Last night I couldn’t sleep. It was about 12:30 am. I was standing in front of the mirror in my bathroom, brushing my teeth and doing what I often do. Talking to myself. It’s true. I may be slightly schizophrenic or more likely…a verbal processor. My mind began to race as I thought of everything that needed to be done over the next week as I prepared for what is about to be some of the craziest weeks ever! Feeling like I was about to have an anxiety attack from all of the ‘to do’s’ that were doing a marathon through my brain and then out my mouth, I quickly spit out my toothpaste and grabbed my notepad. “To Do,” I wrote big and bold on top of the paper, underlining it with great vigor as if that made me feel more in control. Forcing my brain to take a short water break from the 26.2 mile trek it had embarked on, I jotted down everything I could think of. ‘Aagggh,’ I sighed to myself as I put down the pen. You see, even though it may be deceiving, putting it on paper always gives me some sense that I am at least on my way to winning the battle. ‘I can do this,” I assured myself and contently turned out the lights and shut my eyes, finally letting my mind run through its finish line.

The next 8 weeks of my life will be a bit insane you see. It’s wedding season and so life for me is about to get a little nutty. However, despite the fact that sometimes my brain feels like its running a marathon, I am so super excited that Mary Fields Photography is under way that it’s all worth it. Plus, some pen and paper with the words ‘To Do’ can go a long way.

Happy Monday!

(And since every post is better with pictures, the one below is honor of WEDDING SEASON! Oh yeah.)