picture winter {day 6}... because not every post i do has to be completely serious!

today's picture winter prompt had us looking for things in our midst that are cracked... or at least symbolic of a cracked or broken state.

tracey wrote:

it can be so hard to remember that when we feel cracked open in some way that there is a reason for it... a greater good... a positive that can come from what we so often see as a negative.

let's celebrate the cracks today and capture them in our photos. without them, there wouldn't be any light getting in!

well, as you can see, i did not take a very deep or symbolic approach to this "assignment" i could have. i have an orange glass lamp with a crack in it {boy was i mad when i got it home from the store... but now i just see it as having character}. we have some walls in this old house with some cracks... one really cool spot on a curved wall in our hallway. i have some items with cracking/peeling paint. but none of these photos were turning out. and even though i am using the d40 today, i still needed to have my subject be transportable so i could bring it to a well-lit room in the house.

so i shot my favorite cracker... the everything cracker from trader joe's! sure... a somewhat obvious approach. and not very deep. but like i said in my submission caption, i'm pregnant, so right now it's all about food for me. {wink}

okay... i'll get serious for at least a little bit here. tracey also added this quote to the beginning of her prompt, as it is one of her favorites:

"everything has cracks in it. it's how the light gets in."

~leonard cohen

i too really LOVE this quote. it reminds me a lot of a favorite song lyric/quote from a song by one of my favorite bands called sixpence none the richer:

"tension is to be loved when it is like a passing note

to a beautiful, beautiful chord."

if you are not familiar with music theory, you might not understand this quote. i will try to explain it as best i can. in music, there is something called dissonance and resolution. often, it is in the form of a minor chord changing to a major chord. many minor chords sound very tense and unsettled {or what is known in music as dissonant}... though they can very often be hauntingly beautiful. but the use of these chords is found a lot when a composer or writer wants to create what, to me, is the most beautiful thing that could ever happen in music... the unsettled chord moves next into a major chord that has the most perfect and settling harmony {one of my favorite words in the english language and concepts in the human mind}. it is as if the dissonant chord resolves into something peaceful... something that sounds right, as if the chord before sounded wrong. not that a dissonant chord is wrong. it can just often seem like it is wrong... like a wrong note was thrown in there, until that note moves up or down to create the "right"-sounding chord.

well... i ramble, but i hope that helped to explain what that lyric means for those of you who are not familiar with music theory. you have all heard it in music, even if you did not know how it could be explained in words. and most likely, you have all found it to be one of the most beautiful things to the human ear.

anyway, i really love both these quotes, because they speak to the pain in our lives. and this is a very poignant thing for me right now. i am trying to understand and work through a very painful and broken relationship these days.

just yesterday, i prayed for so long that God would help me see this relationship through his eyes, because i did not want my human pride to get in the way of how i view it. i have held on to so many beliefs for so long about it, that i knew i had to let go of those and give them to God. and then, i had to let his spirit wash over me to help me see it how he does. and pray that he would help me do what he asks in regard.

i don't say this to pat myself on the back. i fought hard to not come to that point, because i wanted to hold on to my convictions about the situation. i did not want to swallow my pride and ask God to show me what i was doing wrong and what i was doing to contribute to the brokenness. but i had to.

i cried and cried the evening before, and ironically {in retrospect after having seen the workshop prompt today}, i had this vision in my mind of holding a very large clay vessel... but only the handle of one side of it was in my hand. the rest of it had broken off into pieces and fallen to the ground next to me, and the other handle was in the hand of the person who i have this relationship with. i cried and told God that i could not hold this broken, hardened clay anymore, because it was cutting me. i asked if i could give it over to him, because i knew he was the only one who could ever mend it. i told him, "i don't even care who is to blame for it being shattered... even if i am 100% to blame. i cannot fix it, and i need to give it to you now, because i think you are the only one who can. and i am sorry for trying to glue it together myself for so long."

it's not fixed yet. but i love these quotes... this theme... how even a painful and broken situation can mean that mending, healing and beautiful music could lie ahead. i'm still waiting on God to show me what is next, because i seriously have no clue what i should do.
...

OKAY, NOW BACK TO THE LIGHTER, FUNNIER SIDE...

well, enough about all that. i had not intended to get so wordy... OR so serious again. but it is truly on my heart.

but on a much lighter note, i have to share what b. and i discussed this morning. he called from work to check on me and see how i was feeling. i told him about today's "picture winter" prompt. i said, "too bad our newborn is not here yet... then i would take a sweet little photo of his or her bottom." i thought that would be such a cute idea... if tastefully done, of course.

then he replied to me, "i can do some plumbing when i get home if you want." what a stitch! i almost considered taking him up on that! okay, not really.

something else sort of funny... i was e-mailing a fellow blogger and workshop participant this morning before i even read the prompt for today. after a sort of long e-mail {i know, you're not surprised i write long e-mails, are you?}, i ended it with, "well, i better go read today's prompt and get crackin' on taking some photos for it." then i went to check the prompt, but it did not even dawn on me that i had made a funny. she then wrote me back and pointed out what i said and asked if i knew what it was about when i wrote that. hahaha! ...well, I thought it was funny, anyway.

incidentally, these crackers were bought when i was in my first trimester. before i became pregnant, this was my favorite cracker. then afterward, i tried eating one, and it made me so nauseous, they quickly went on the "non-pregnancy-friendly foods" blacklist for a while. so the box i have now sat in my cupboard for a good two months. but i'm happy to say, i can once again devour them with pleasure.

you should try them too! crackers topped with garlic, onion, sesame, poppy & caraway seeds! delicious with hummus!

i'm off to "get crackin'" on the rest of my day... lots to do around the house. have a good day, all!