This N That...

It's long past due for another post. However, as the last few years have gone by, I've not been out on many photo shoots. So, what HAVE I been doing, you might ask? 

In the last few years, a lot has happened. I lost my Mother - it's always hard to lose a parent...

(I miss you Mom!)

And, on a happier note, I've attended and graduated from massage school. Yes, I am now a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT). I'm currently working on becoming a Master Massage Therapist (MMT) so I have many more hours of classes to complete. My camera has been on the back shelf.

By the way, if you live near me, here's my massage website: klg.massagetherapy.com

So...if you think changing careers, coming out of retirement to go back to school and taking classes at age 60 - soon to be 61 - then setting up a practice from scratch is crazy, you may very well be right.  But one thing I have learned from this myself is that you are NEVER too old to do what your heart desires!

And, I've had such a feeling of accomplishment having finished the initial school, more of an accomplishment to have received my license, and the best accomplishment helping other people feel better and pain-free!

Now, while I pursue my Masters, in between classes, I work in my very own little studio giving massages, facials, and wraps. I converted the little house behind my own home into the perfect little massage studio. It has everything I need.

Nope, life around here is never dull or slow. And, even with all of that, I still even get to have a little fun here and there...like  traveling back to my beloved Mexico to do a little shopping and spend quality time with dear friends.

... In fact, NOTHING was going to keep me down! :)

Life is too short to let the small stuff keep you down. So get out there and reach for the stars. Laugh whenever you can, because life isn't always a bowl of cherries - sad, but true. Make the most of your life! (Like making crazy videos of yourself acting silly for your granddaughter)

That's all for now. Until the next time I pick up my camera... 

The Beautiful Path Beyond

Hello, my name is Kay, KayBird to some friends, and welcome to my Blog!

My husband calls me Kaybird or just plain Bird. I'm not sure exactly why but it could only be for two possible reasons ~ 1. I love to sing and he thought I sounded like a beautiful song bird OR 2. I talked so much I reminded him of a chatter bird! I'd like to think it's the first reason. : ) Either way, I love photography and I decided to use KayBird to sign all of my work.

When thinking of what I wanted to blog about, photography came to mind...I love taking pictures and I love changing them into digital art even more! I've traveled just a bit and I feel that I've captured some really interesting photos -- at least I think so. Beauty, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder. But we'll see what you think as I post a different one in each blog. Now, as I said, I love manipulating most of them into digital art so sometimes you get a photo, sometimes you get digital art....

I noticed that, as I looked over all of my work, I could see a story or poem in each one. So, I thought THAT'S what I'll do! I'll post a photo and blog about it. What it means to me - what it might mean to YOU!

I would normally start with something very upbeat and beautiful but for my first post, while I find it IS beautiful, I wanted to do something a little special to me....a dedication, in fact. This first blog is dedicated to my beautiful mom, Hazel Jeanette Labit Guidroz, who passed from this world February 25, 2013.

  The Beautiful Path Beyond

(...in special memory of Hazel J Guidroz, loving mother...)

What do you see when you look at this picture? 

It's a special picture for me, with a very personal meaning...a very special memory. My mom passed away 6 months ago after a very long illness. We were all by her side at the end. In fact, we were all by her side for most of the last 4 months of her life.

Every day my sisters and I would take turns visiting and sitting with mom and it became a way of life for me - those last 4 months. Day in and day out, you'd know where to find me. There were happy days and there were sad days...mostly sad. Even though it was a very sad time, we shared a lot of laughs with Mom in those last days. Something I'm very thankful for! You know, it's always hard to prepare for and to realize that one of your loved ones is coming to the end of their life. But in the end, it happens to us all, prepared or not. 

Toward the end, I decided I wanted to go to Avery Island (Louisiana) with my trusty camera and my best friend, Laura, just to take a break and get a bit of fresh air. Little did I know I'd capture this one picture and it would come to mean so much.

When I got back from the Island, I set the pictures aside for a day or two. Then, one day when I had a break, I looked through them and saw this one. The azaleas were at the end of their cycle but I was able to capture them with flowers still on their branches and flowers all around them on the ground. It was pretty...the majestic live oaks all around, especially this one in the background.

I love photography, but I've come to love digital art even more. I came across a program, the Redfield Fractalius Filter, that can change a regular photograph into "a work of art" if you will. Sometimes I get a water color effect; other times I get this electrifying effect - there are so many different things you can do with this filter! I work with a photo until I get the effect I want - it's as simple as that. 

That particular day I chose to work with this photo because of the flowers and the trees and I wanted a soft effect, so I worked until I got what I wanted. There you see it! I sized it for a wall hanging because I had decided to frame it at a later date. Then I put all of my photo work away.

At the end of her time, my mom passed from this world with her loving husband and all of her children by her side...and then it was time to prepare for her funeral. During the preparations, we had to choose photos to display on her video, and I remembered the photo I'd taken. I pulled it up on the computer and looked at it again. I decided I'd frame this piece and we displayed it at her funeral...only our family knowing the significance of this particular piece.

Let me tell you what I saw when I looked at this picture...I saw two beautiful azalea bushes nearing the end of their season. It appeared the smaller bush would lose her flowers first. And as I looked beyond the two azaleas, I saw a beautiful pathway leading to a place unknown. Unknown, but peaceful...calling for you to come and see what was at the end of the path.

I saw my Mom and Dad nearing the end of their life...I also saw a beautiful pathway that they would travel down once their time had come. A quiet, peaceful, path with a bit of light at the end, a happy path! Can you see it? Just a small glimmer of light beyond the trees on the pathway - something to walk toward, something to look forward to at the end of the path...

And, so, I end my first blog - not on a sad note, but a happy one as I think of the beautiful place my Mom has gone to visit...at the end of the path! Until next time....

-KayBird-