10,000 Hidden Things to be Happy about in One Photo

 

 

 

The inspiration for this post tonight comes from Kelle Hampton. Amanda introduced me to her blog four years ago, and I've been following her ever since. She's one of the six blogs that we rated "Blogs We Love" on our sidebar to the right, Enjoying the Small Things. If you haven't visited her blog yet, you should click over now and ignore the rest of my post. She's that good, that inspiring, and you'll feel like you're a part of her family immediately.

I follow Kelle on Instagram and saw this post today:

As soon as I saw the caption, I knew I wanted to take part in the question she posed. Being the photo fanatic that I am, there are thousands of photos that leave footprints on my heart in numerous ways. Naturally, because my wedding was only six months ago, I gravitated towards sifting through that file first. So many photos came to mind and as I searched, it got harder and harder to narrow it down. I decided to choose this one though:

This photo is definitely stuffed with 10,000 hidden things: 10,000 things to be happy about all in one picture. You're probably thinking, that's so odd. Of all photos taken on her wedding day, why that one?! Here's 10 reasons why:

-My two aunts, Aunt Aliza and Aunt Rene, who I absolutely adore and still look up to, have their arms wrapped around me for a quick photo opp.
-Being that this photo was taken from behind, one can easily notice how tightly we're holding onto each other.
-I can still feel how that felt. Generations of love.
-My dress. The dress I've been waiting to wear for months. The corset and beading.
-The reactions, smiles, and silhouettes of everyone else in the background.
-The smells of delicious foods at our cocktail hour.
-The muffled voices and hum of excitement from people that I love the most.
-Music playing, glasses clinking, and forks scraping plates.
-Pretty gold chairs and stations of food.
-Everyone dressed up, looking their best, and wearing their favorite dancing shoes.
-Exchanging hugs, kisses on cheeks, and whispers of "you look gorgeous!" around the room.

I get chills writing about these details.

What a powerful activity...
slow down,
take in each detail,
enjoy,
soak up happiness.

I challenge you to do this one day. Take a look at your photos... any of them. Notice the 10,000 hidden things to be happy about in that one photo. If you try it, let me know. I'd love to hear from you!