Autumn is almost here...

and these leaves wait in anticipation of the fall.

Anticipation - 8x12 print $25

The Roots Series is now magnetic!

Spruce up your kitchen or office with a Stuck on You Magnet from Sara Norris Photography! I love this "Roots" series. These would be perfect in your office to hang pictures of loved ones or an important memo.

www.saranorris.etsy.com

Johnny Appleseed Sets!

Apple Blossoms are so soft and dreamy. They remind me of walking barefoot in the grass on a warm Spring day and the sound of busy little bees buzzing around the blossoms. You can bring their sweetness into your home with my new Johnny Appleseed Sets!

These images are now available in my Etsy shop as a Big Set and a Mini Set.

www.saranorris.etsy.com

365 Project: Day 33

Walking outside into the newly crisp air today it all of a sudden hit me: its fall. Sometimes it seems like a person's whole world consists of the three foot radius surrounding their body. We keep our heads down as we go about our days and forget to glance up to see what is happening just beyond our bubble. I took a moment to step outside myself and open my field of vision. I noticed the trees near my house are almost bare. The fallen leaves were tumbling down the street on a breeze. When did this happen? Where have I been?

As I was driving I started to think what it must be like to live the life of a tree. During the process of your growth you have tethered yourself firmly to the ground. That is your place in the world. In your lifetime you'd witness an amazing amount of things from one spot.

Your life would be a constant a cycle. Once a year your leaves would change to the most brilliant shades of gold and burgundy. Then, the Winter would strip you bare and coat you in a cloak of white only to have the warmth of the sun awaken you in the Spring. You would be reborn. A fresh start every year.

There was a point to this thought process. I don't usually go around thinking of the lives of trees. I was thinking of this because of the band Dead Sea Choir. There is a link on their website to a Google search for "I want to start my life all over again". Its very interesting what you come across when you search for this. When I clicked on some of the search results, I found cries for help from sad, desperate people who felt trapped in their unhappy lives. For one personal reason or another, they've each come to a point where they feel the path they've followed in life isn't right anymore and they are ready for a do-over. It made me sad to think people live their lives feeling this way.

Someone once told me it is never too late to start over. She said no matter your age, or circumstance, or the choices you've made in life, you can always start again. It is never too late for a do-over. People never tell you this about life. I felt like she was letting me in on a secret. These words of wisdom have stuck with me for years. And I live by them.

Change, especially life change, is hard and its scary. This is why we resist it. This is why we think it is impossible and we cling to the predictable even though it can make us miserable. Throughout my life I have discovered that I am not this way. One day I can just decide that I'm done. I'm over it. I might resist the idea at first, but once I make up my mind that I am finished with a part of my life, I do a complete 180 and change everything. I have done this a couple of times in my short life already.

I think I am like a tree, and I find that empowering. Just when I feel like my branches are being pulled down by the weight of Winter, I eventually find the sun and start again. I wish that other people felt like they had the power to change their lives. I hope I have let them in on this secret like she did for me.

365 Project: Day 24

This is my grandparents' house in Texas. Yes, it is pink, and so are most of the things inside of it, including the entire middle bathroom. My grandmother, Mee Maw, loves pink apparently. I have so many fond memories of visiting this house when I was a kid. It has changed over the years, but fundamentally it still feels and smells the same as it always has.

I spent a lot of time here visiting with my grandfather, Granddaddy, while on this trip to Texas. I thought I'd share a few of my childhood memories of this house with ya'll (I was just in Texas, I can say ya'll). I spent a lot of time out in this yard running around barefoot. Their yard was always full of nature. Plants, trees, flowers, little green lizards, thick grass, and a garden that my Granddaddy tended. I loved to sit on that wooden swing behind me in this picture.

There are pictures of me and my cousins in this tree when I was little. I tried so hard to climb its branches. Now that I'm a little taller, I can climb right up with hardly any trouble at all (and I did several times for this picture). My dad had a dog named Snoopy growing up who used to climb this tree. There was a similar tree in the front yard that was always full of snails. I tried equally as hard to climb that tree, but the trunk was much taller than this one. It was cut down not too long ago. It was old and they were afraid its huge branches would fall on the house during one of the recent hurricanes.

I was surprised to see this rose bush was still alive and blooming on the side of the house. My Mee Maw would cut these little pink roses for me. She would remove the thorns and wrap the stems in a wet paper towel for me to take home. Somewhere there is a picture of me on Easter Sunday, all dressed up in a little pink and white dress, sitting on a green velvet chair, posing with one of these roses.

These ferns are thick and abundant all over their yard. Those little green lizards hide in here and climb up the side of the house. The house behind me in this picture (across the street) belongs to Betty. The same woman who lived there when my dad was growing up in this house. She is the sweetest woman and I've known her my whole life. She still walks across the street to sit in lawn chairs on the driveway with my grandparents and discuss the neighborhood. We tease her and my Mee Maw that the two of them are the "Neighborhood Watch".

There is something so comforting to me about this house. Its full of memories. It still smells like coffee, the screen door still sounds the same when it closes, my Granddaddy's WWII metals still hang proudly in a display case on the living room wall, and there is always candy in the crystal dish on the kitchen counter (candy corns this time). My family grew up coming to this house for holidays and visits. I grew up here, my dad grew up here, and my grandparents insist on never moving even though the neighborhood has become dangerous and full of crime. I worry about them living in this house, but it is their home.

The Guardian

... I felt safe with him.

Brothers and Sisters

There is nothing more special than the relationship between a brother and a sister.  My mom always said that she wanted to have a boy first so I would have an older brother to protect me.  Unfortunately I was the oldest and she ended up with two girls instead! But, I think I do a pretty good job of looking out for my little sister.  Although, I am currently trying to convince her to jump out of a plane with me next month...

This little girl is lucky to have an older brother who adores her.  I recently had the opportunity to photograph them both at their beautiful home.

Even though she was getting sleepy, her facial expressions came to life when her mom turned on the musical mobile above her bed.  She was completely captivated by the little animals.

There is a great rope swing in their front yard!  He was just like a little Tarzan.

Quote for the day:

"Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero."

-Marc Brown

Golden

There is a new print available in my shop today!  Golden trees are everywhere during fall in Boston, but I thought this one was particularly beautiful.

Golden

Tree of yellow leaves.

They will all fall to the ground.

Crisp and crunchy sound.

"Golden" was taken on a walk through Boston Common. The park is so beautiful. Its one of the things that I miss most about living there.  I highly recommend that you take a stroll through this park if you haven't done so yet.  Put it on your life's to do list.

Quote for the Day:

"Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever...it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything."

--Aaron Siskind

The Tree of Life...

...is in my Etsy shop!

Quote for the day:

"We can learn a lot from trees: they're always grounded but never stop reaching heavenward."

 - Everett Mamor

Fall Leaves

John and I took a little stroll in Berkley last weekend and saw the most beautiful fall leaves. I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures. 

Pretty soon all of the beautiful golds and oranges will turn to brown and fall away leaving the trees all bare and twiggy. 

Winter is on its way to California...

This print is now available in my Etsy shop.

Quote for the day:

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns."

- George Eliot