Family. What A Neat Gift.

Not sure where I'd be without my Family.

Anybody else feel that? Maybe your family isn't the best, and for that I am sorry. But, if you think about it, you now have the opportunity to create a family and do it better. I think it's safe to say that God designed us for community. We are designed to have people around us. So, even if you don't want to have kids, or don't even see yourself getting married, I hope you have a found family. I hope you seek that out.

I have my family. My mom, my dad, my little brother, and our dogs. A group of people I would trust with anything. Struggles, successes, dreams, disasters, a funny story, etc. I probably share more than I need to with my immediate family. Then, of course, I have my extended family. This spreads from grandparents, to church family, to best friends. I have been blessed with an abundance of people.

And then, people let me in to see their abundance of people. When someone hires me to take photos of their family, they are hiring me to look into their dynamics and photograph the relationships I see. They hire me to capture what their kids looked like, what they wore, what they did. They hire me to get that stolen kiss between mom and dad, the kiss they didn't even know could be seen. They hire me to get the giggles, the smiles, the tree climbs, the conversations. They me hire to see them. And I love the finished product.

I hope you seek out family. I know many people in this broken world have family they'd rather forget. My parents have taken in kids who wanted to do that very thing. So, maybe don't seek out that kind of family. Seek out reliable people, whom you love, trust, and want the best for. Seek out those who want the best for you, and are willing to say the hard things. I am of the belief that Family is the start of who we are. So, no matter what your family looks like, love it. find the value in it, even when it bugs you.

And hey, when you do find it... maybe hire your friendly neighborhood relationship photographer to help you capture your neat gift.

Until we meet again friends,

Emma