Let me take you back to a school holiday day in the life of a teenager in the eighties.
We got up around 8:00 am, dressed, had breakfast at the table, and brushed our teeth. Then we would do our chores, and if mom was happy, we could visit our friends. But we had to be back before dinner at 6:00 pm or in the winter before it gets dark.
Our parents did not drive us to visit our friends. We got on our bicycles or walked to them. We were never thinking twice about the danger that may be lurking around the corner. We spend most of the day on the streets. We were going from one friend’s house to the next.
Our only rule was to be back before dinner or in the winter before it got dark. We had dinner at the table, and afterward, we helped mom to clean up.
At 10:00 pm, it was lights out. That was no problem because you had a hectic day on the streets.
The children today go to bed whenever they feel like it after gaming online the whole night. Maybe they will get up by 1:00 pm. Perhaps they will get dressed and brush their teeth. They eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner in front of the computer or with their cell phones.
If they want to go to a friend’s house, you must drive them, because it is not safe to walk or ride a bicycle alone anymore.
Oh, my goodness, today you are making me dig deep.
My earliest childhood memories were when I discovered a key to our back door. Dad gave me a big bunch of keys; he was unaware there was a master key on it.
Every morning just after the sun rose, I would unlock the back door and go outside to play. My parents were perplexed because they would lock the door at night and put the key up high so I couldn’t get to it.
After a few weeks, they decided to spy on me. I would move the one stool closer to the door to reach the keyhole. I would look at my keys, choose the master key, and open the door.
That evening my parents confiscated my keys and removed the master key from the bunch. The following day I tried to open the back door and could not. My mom told me I was so angry I started crying.
If there is one thing I am not, that is brave. I am afraid of change, meeting new people, and the unknown.
I can hear you asking yourself. ‘If she’s afraid of the unknown, meeting new people, and change, how is it possible that she is a travel and landscape photographer.’
Well, it is easy. I trust in my Heavenly Father or the Universe. He would never put me in a situation that I could not handle. He gave me a talent, and who am I not to use it to show the world the beauty surrounding us?
In short, I am not brave, but I trust in the Universe, my Heavenly Father.
As you all know, life is not promised to us. No matter how many plans one makes, our Heavenly Father has the last say, and He can alter our plans in a split second.
I have short and long-term goals and plans set up for myself. But I know that it can change at any moment in time.
On my short-term list for 2023, I have a few goals.
Build my Landscape and Travel photography portfolios.
Work on my flower book.
Finish my Gaelic lessons.
Learn to speak Spanish
Give my website a makeover.
Mainly I want to be happy and live every day to the fullest with the people I love.
When I look at the stars I feel at ease. Here in the city, the stars shine but not as bright because of all the other light interference. When we go camping, I love sitting or lying on the ground and look at the stars. It is so peaceful and beautiful.
When I was a child, I would always look outside my window at the moon and the stars. Sometimes I fell asleep, other times I made up stories in my head that I am friends with someone on a faraway planet and we are sending messages to each other with our thoughts…. Somedays I wish I still had that imagination….
Looking at the stars also leaves me with questions…..
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Oh, my goodness, let me think about this one for a minute…
Okay, I need help……
Dear Google, please tell me what type of tree am I.
According to Brainfall, I am an Oak Tree.
Oak Tree:
“You are a steadfast and responsible person. You’re deeply connected to your roots and are always supportive of your friends and family.”
brainfall.com
Okay, I can live with that. I love Oak trees. Yes, I am responsible. Before I do something, I will first make sure that it is safe and it will not conflict with anything else. I do always support my family and friends. I try to encourage them and try to keep them positive.
According to Celtic Tree Astrology, I am a Birch.
Birch Tree
“Birch signs are often highly driven and motivate others. You are always reaching for more, seeking better horizons and obtaining higher aspirations. Birch signs (just like the tree) are tolerant, tough, and resilient. You are cool-headed and are natural-born rulers, often taking command when a situation calls for leadership. You are a natural leader and do best taking the lead. When in touch with your softer side, you also bring beauty in otherwise barren spaces, brightening up a room with your guile, and charming crowds with your quick wit.”
onetreeplanted.org
Well, I do agree that I like to motivate others. Yes, I am always looking for more and looking to better myself. I am tolerant to a point; I am tough and resilient. I don’t think I am a natural leader not at all, I like to be in the background. Yes, I like to bring beauty into others’ lives with my photography.
According to Playbuzz, I am a Weeping Willow
You are a Weeping Willow! Your leaves hang over your emotions, blocking the view of the inside. Every once and a while, at the right time, you reveal an entrance, and let people see what’s really inside. You are very wise in your choice of friends.
playbuzz.com
I must say this one is also true. I only let a few people in and I do hide my feelings.
But that is enough quizzes for now. I like all of them and I wonder what a Weeping Birch Oak would look like?
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I am only a minute piece in the puzzle of the universe. I try to be grateful, positive and respectful. I do try my utmost best to be kind to others and make them smile.
I use my photography to show others the world through my lens and maybe brighten their day.
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I love music, all genres really. What I listen to all depends on what mood I am in. For the past few months, I have been listening to Country music. I have a Spotify account and these days I use it to listen to music. The collection of music is fantastic.
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I can find solitude anywhere in nature. Even in my garden. But when I really have a big decision to make or I am spinning out of control the best place for me is to go for walk on the beach all by myself until I feel calm.
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Oh, my word, am I just tired or, are these prompts becoming more personal every day.
The favorite part about myself is, there is no favorite part. I am alive, I can walk, touch, smell, hear, think, see, taste, and read. I love with all my heart and will help where and when I am in the position to do so.
My Heavenly Father knew exactly how I need to be. Who am I to not be grateful for what He gave me?
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As a child, I had this dream that at the time scared me. I had the same dream for a few years. The only thing that changed was the location.
I dreamed I was walking to school, the shop, in the backyard, and then all of a sudden, a leopard appeared in front of me. It scared me shitless (sorry it is the best way to describe how I was feeling) every time. Then I start running but I can’t get away from it. If I turn right and think I am in the clear the leopard appears in front of me again forcing me to change direction. This goes on the whole dream. I always ended up in my room and when I want to hide in my cupboard the leopard is already there. Then I woke up.
The leopard never harmed me and as I got older, I realized that the leopard must be a guardian angel who directed me in a different direction.
One day I was cleaning out my cupboard and, at the back of the shelf, there was a tapestry that my great grandmother made. My mom put it there for safekeeping. When I opened it, I nearly had a heart attack! The Leopard in my dream was on it. I have never seen that tapestry before and it looked like the leopard was smiling and looking at me.
Come to think of it. I wonder what happened to that tapestry?
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When I look back into my life’s journey and see how much I have overcome it empowers me.
In October 2015 I lost my mother, found out my husband had an affair, had a child with her, filed for a divorce, and took care of everything and everyone who needed it. I handled my mother’s estate, arranged her funeral. Dad was not in a state to do anything. I cared for him, made sure he ate his food and drink his medication. Armand my oldest had Air Rifle practice 3 times a week about 40km away from home and Lian had his Cricket and Badminton practice on the days Armand was off. I had a business and two households to run and I did it. How? I have no idea because while I am typing this, I still can’t believe that I did not have a meltdown.
That makes me feel strong.
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Me: I wonder if you can tell me what happened to greet others, say please, and thank you?
Respect: Well, my dear. The answer is easy. People do not have respect for each other anymore. They assume that everybody owes them.
Me: But how did that happen?
Respect: You see in the old day’s children were taught to respect others and themselves by their parents. Children were disciplined when they disrespected others and had to apologize to them. Somewhere along the line parents got too busy and too tired to teach their children to respect others and themselves. The end result, children grew, up get married, and do not teach their children respect and therefore also no manners.
Me: I get so mad when people hurt nature. Oh, my word, and don’t get me started on children ripping leaves of flowers or branches off a young tree. Then I am not even talking about kicking and abusing animals.
Respect: It all boils down to parents being too lazy to teach their children to respect nature.
Me: It is so sad. No wonder the world is in the state it is in.
Respect: Very sad indeed my dear.
Me: Thank you for giving me some insight on this subject. I would love to pick your brain some more in the future. I still have millions of questions for you.
Respect: Thank you for having me, Coreen. I look forward to our next visit. Remember to respect yourself and others.
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I believe that if you put your mind to it and if you work hard, you can make all your dreams come true.
Since I can remember I loved taking photos and it was a dream of mine to one day own a proper camera and take beautiful photos. Well, that dream came true in 2009 when my husband at the time bought me a camera and told me to live my dream…. That is what I have been doing since.
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Taken just before Victoria West, Northern Cape, South Africa 2015-07-01
This photo is my favorite because it was the last holiday my mother was still with us. It has 4 elements that I love. A tree, a Windmill, beautiful sunrise and it is peaceful….
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I have been thinking long and hard about this one. If I started writing about this it will end up being a novel and not a post. I will keep it short and true.
I have been making lists and planning ahead my whole life, and when I think back nothing ever worked out as I planned it. Life always throws you curveballs or surprise the hell out of you. No one can predict the future and that is fine with me.
I like the fact that Life is a mystery.
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Dad bought a few books in Scotland during our visit there. I have not yet read any of it, but it is on my reading list. Scottish Folk Tales are first on my list. I think I will start tonight….
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Well, I have a superpower, I have MOM Power, and the day your first child is born your MOM Power is activated. Moms can do anything they put their minds to. They can even make the pain go away with a band-aid and a kiss. Moms can read minds and know what mischief her children are up to when they are just thinking about it. Even when your kids are all grown you still have your superpower you can detect heartache a mile away….
But if I can choose a second Superpower…..
I love to travel so teleporting would be the ideal superpower for me, or maybe not then it takes the fun out of having a road trip. But with a superpower like that, I can teleport to the desired country I want to capture, and if anybody needs me, I can be back within minutes….
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Oh, my word I am passionate about a few causes. I try to contribute to each and everyone in my own way.
Nature Conservation: When I take photos in the field, I try my best to capture as many of the Fauna and Flora in that area. I try my best to stay on the footpaths, but sometimes one has to move off to get that flower in the field. When I do that, I try to step on rocks and bold spots on the ground. I take my trash with me if I eat something. I try to use glass to minimize my plastic use. I also re-use plastic containers a few times before disposing of them.
Wildlife conservation: I can’t stop poachers but my bank is donating money to different charities. I chose Wildlife Conservation as mine. We have to protect our wildlife for future generations.
Saving Water: We use our shower water to flush the toilets. I use the water that we use to rinse our glasses and cups to water the grass. We have water tanks to catch the rainwater and use it to water the garden. In the past I used to collect the washing machines water to water the garden, then my washing machine broke. We use dad’s one now and it is very far to carry all the water to wet the garden. But if I have to, I will do it. I did it in the past I can do it again. We have to save water wherever we can. Without it, we will not survive….
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This is a difficult one for me. I have faced many challenges in my life some I can write about, others I overcame, but don’t want to remember them. So, I packed them away in a “box”.
I think my biggest challenge to date was trying to get pregnant. On 24 June 1995 the Springbucks won the World Cup Rugby and my husband at that time told me that if they won, we can start a family.
Let me start from the beginning. We got married in February 1995, I was 21 years old, the pill or any other Birth Control methods did not work. I either got as sick as a dog or got infections galore. So, you can imagine my relief when we started trying for a family. I got pregnant and had my first miscarriage on 1 December 1995 at 12 weeks.
I was devastated. But the worst part was when the gynecologist told me that I will never be able to have children. I did not believe him, I believed that only God has a say in that. The doctor put me on hormone tablets and I gained 25 kg in about 8 months. I was crushed I started getting asthma attacks, was tired all the time and it did not matter if I exercise or watch what I eat I keep gaining weight.
After a year and hitting the scale at 98kg I decided enough is enough. In April 1997 I went to my house doctor and told him I refuse to go back to my old gynecologist. He referred me to Dr. Lampen.
Dr. Lampen send me a lot of tests. He examined me from top to bottom and explained to us that I must try to lose some weight. Every 100g will help. He started treating my anemia, and I started exercising 7 days a week. I lost a few kg and Dr. Lampen began with a fertility program.
After many disappointments and tears, in October 1999 we decided to rather focus on Anton a boy we had in foster care at that time, renovate the house and I wanted to start to study Law and was supposed to enroll on 5 January 2000.
In November 1999 I joined a weight loss program. I never drank any of the food suppressors. I got my vitamin shots every week and started losing weight and centimeters. Just before Christmas my mentor looked at me and said something is wrong. I am losing weight but I am gaining centimeters.
4 January 2000 I went to the doctor. I was tired all the time, felt bloated and constipated. I asked the doctor to please give me something. He told me to go and lie on the bed he has to examine me. He had a look that worried me. He asked me to go please give him a urine sample. He came back to the examination room even more confused when he left me. Back on the examination table. He examined me again.
While sitting at his desk, he informed me that he will have to send me for an ultrasound. He thinks I am at least 19 – 21 weeks pregnant, but all three urine tests said it was negative. I did not even get excited, I had too many disappointments in the past. My mom accompanied me to the ultrasound, I did not want to get my husband’s hopes up. Mom said she heard me all the way at reception when I screamed with joy when the doctor showed me, my 19,5-week-old baby.
On 18 May 2000, Armand was born, and 15 months later on, 8 August 2001 Lian was born.
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What will my ideal day look like? That is very easy.
A day on the open road, accompanied by Dad, my “Boyfriend” (my camera), my tripod, a flask of coffee, a full tank of petrol (one tank = 650km), and enough money for a tasty breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Ooh and don’t forget the treats. A day starting out when it is still dark outside. Being greeted with a beautiful sunrise, a day filled with endless compositions and beautiful landscapes, and ending with a stunning sunset somewhere along the coast.
Maybe just maybe I will get the chance to do it again very soon….
Sunrise in the OverbergSunset at Blaauwberg
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🌸 I love flowers and love to give them to others. Most of the time I will use it for my female followers.
🤗 While growing up every time someone gave me present, I gave them a hug and say thank you. When I receive a compliment from my followers, I send them a hug🤗.
🤦🏻♀️ This one I only use when I talk about myself. I have so many facepalming moments and this emoji is so fitting.
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It means living a life that has meaning and purpose in the world. It means living with passion and living without fear. It means advocating for what you believe in. It means to be confident and ready for anything that the Universe throws at you. It means to create the life you want and loves. It means to live your life fully. It means to take risks and to stop doubting yourself. It means to learn to say no and to know your worth.
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I love today’s prompt. I am grateful for much more than 5 things. I did a practice one day and I ended up writing down 205 things I was grateful for. After that exercise I could still think of more things I was grateful for.
I am truly grateful for my Dad’s progress and that he is going to come home soon.
I am truly grateful for my two wonderful son’s Armand and Lian, my partner Morné, my family, my four legged children, and all of my friends.
I am truly grateful for being alive, able to walk, touch, breath, smell, taste, see, hear, have emotions and feelings.
I am truly grateful for all that I have, a roof over my head, a bed to sleep in, clothes to wear the list go on and on…
I am truly grateful to be able to do what I love every day and that I have the equipment to do it.
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Sorry, I am a day late on this prompt, but I took a day off from my technology yesterday.
When people first meet me, they assume that I am shy and quiet. Yes, it takes me a while to warm up to people.
The first time I meet a group of people, I only interact when someone speaks to me. I like to observe and see what type of people are in the room and to who can I relate?
When people get to know me, they find out that I am not as shy and quiet as they assumed. Someone once said they thought I was stuck up. We became good friends in the end.
As a photographer, I don’t have the luxury to assess people from a distance when they come for a photoshoot. To make your clients feel at ease, you have to talk to them.
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Honestly, I don’t like my writing. I don’t have a style, and I feel there is room for improvement. Sometimes I use the wrong words to describe things and don’t get me going on my tenses….
Some days I feel like I need to go back to grade 1 and start from the beginning again.
When I write my Good Morning blogs, I use a template that I made. My followers will have noticed that. But I do try to write something personal too. How I feel, maybe share something that happened the previous day. I share photos I took with my phone when I go outside to feed the birds and water the garden. My Good Morning blog is personal.
I joined the Bloganuary 2022 challenge to try and learn from others. Over the coming months, I want to change my style of blogging. Yes, I share a lot of photos daily. I get information from different sites and combine it to give my followers a bit of background on the town, memorial, or place I visited.
I want to write a personal story of the journey to capture that specific landscape photo or how I felt when I discovered that flower I never photographed before. I want to put all my thoughts down on paper and write a decent article or piece about the Nature Reserve I visited for the first time.
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What makes me laugh? Where do I begin? I love laughing. Some days it does not take much to get me started and then I can’t stop. Other days I am slow but when I realized that it was funny I will start laughing.
I laugh at Willow when she does something weird. I laugh at Spyker, my parrot when he starts talking and making up sentences or saying something fitting when you talk to him.
I laugh at silly TV programs, TikToks, and videos.
I laugh at funny jokes, and sometimes if something is really funny I can laugh about it for hours.
I laugh when little children say something cute or do something silly. Children are one’s biggest source of laughter I think.
I laugh when someone falls or walks into the sliding door… It is human nature but it does not mean that I don’t care or like it.
When I do, say, or think something really stupid, I laugh at myself. Sometimes the people around me think I am mad, but I can’t tell them what went through my mind… It is an inside joke meant just for me.
They say Laughter is the best medicine. So I think today I am going to watch some funny shows and laugh myself healthy again.
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There are many inspirational writers that inspire me, but my friend, Renate, has been my rock for many years. I look up to her and she is a very kind, giving, and faithful woman.
Renate was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. (Ehlers-Danlos syndrome affects connective tissue, primarily the skin, joints and blood vessel walls. Symptoms include overly flexible joints that can dislocate, and skin that’s translucent, elastic and bruises easily. In some cases, there may be dilation and even rupture of major blood vessels. Treatment helps manage symptoms and monitor for complications. Options include drugs, physiotherapy and sometimes surgery.)
She struggled with this since I knew her in high school but never knew what it was. Despite the chronic pain she was in, she always smiled and tried to help others.
When she got diagnosed a few years later, she had to leave the job she loved. She did not let it get her down, and if it did she never showed it. She is always ready to listen, and try to lift your spirits when you are down.
A few years back she started knitting Premature baby clothes, baby blankets, scarfs, hats, and mittens for the less fortunate. She donates it and ask nothing in return. Even with the EDS she still keeps knitting through the pain because someone needs it.
I love my friend to bits and I can’t wait for Covid to be something of the past so that we can visit again. She has a very high risk of being infected and that is why she rather isolate herself. I miss our visits a lot, but at least we have WhatsApp to keep in touch.
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Today I am very emotional and when I saw this prompt, the first thing that popped into my mind is I wish I knew how to fix my Dad.
Dad has been in the hospital since 23 December 2021 and one day dad is alert and making jokes and the next day nothing. New symptoms keep popping up. It started with Heart failure and Fluid in the lungs, Fever, and High Blood pressure. Then a few days later Chronic Kidney failure was added to the list of symptoms. Then his HB levels dropped and he had to get blood.
If I could only fix Dad, then my headaches and spasms in my back and neck will also go away. I have been stressing about Dad for a while now and it is catching up with me. I had Pneumonia when Dad was admitted to the hospital, but I phoned twice a day to find out how he was doing. Then Dad had a night nurse who could not tell me what was going on so I asked Morné to please take me to see my Dad the next and get some answers. Dad was sleeping and his dayshift nurse told me dad is doing good and he is just tired of all the coughing.
Since then I drove myself to see Dad on the days I felt up to it. Dad was always sleeping. I decided to stay at the hospital till I get to speak to his doctor and get some answers. Three hours later I spoke to the doctor who told me that Dad had a heart attach a few weeks ago. I asked him why did we not see the symptoms that he is having one, the doctor just said Dad is Diabetic and they don’t really show any symptoms…. Then he changed the conversation to my “Covid cough”.
He told me that a non-smoker is not supposed to get Pneumonia and also that he thinks I have Covid because my cough sounds like a Covid cough. I showed him my test results for Covid was negative and told him I never had a smoke in my entire life. He still did not believe me.
Two days ago Dad had to get blood again. I asked the nurse what could be the reason and she could not tell me. I had to ask a friend who was a nurse if she could shed light on the matter and she did. It is because of Kidney failure. Now don’t get me wrong I am not saying that I can do a better job looking after my Dad, but jeez is the nurses not supposed to know the causes of different symptoms? Are they not supposed to keep the family updated?
I wish I knew how to fix Dad then he can come home…..
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Well, all my toys were a favorite at one stage of my life.
When I was small my favorite toy must have been the sandbox my dad build me when we moved into our house. As soon as the sun came up I let myself outside with my secret key and go play in my sandbox. That was until my parents got hold of my secret key…..
I had lots of special toys growing up and when I moved out of my parents house I only took two toys that have very special meaning to me.
My Bride doll and my Orange Car.
My grandfather gave me that Orange Car and nobody but me was allowed to play with it. Now it has a special place in my show cabinet and is still off-limits to anyone. It does make an appearance now and then when I do a themed photoshoot.
My Bride Doll. I saw her for the first time in a toy store window in Cape Town one school holiday. I fell in love with her, but she was very expensive and my mom said that there is no way that they can afford it. My dad passed the store on his way to the station one evening after work and saw that the doll was on sale. The next day he went back to the store and bought it as a Christmas present for me.
My parents always tried to award us with something when we passed our grades with good marks. Well despite what the teachers and school psychologist said, I passed grade one with flying colors. (According to them I was too young for grade one and that along the way I will fail a grade or two… Well they were all wrong, I never failed a grade or had a bad report in my entire school career.)
The day I got my grade one report Dad and Mom looked at it and smiled from ear to ear. They told me to wait and they came back with a big box wrapped in Christmas Paper…. They told me to open it and there she was my Bride doll! I was so happy I screamed, I think they could hear me all the way to Cape Town. Before I played with her I washed my hands, she never saw the ground I always played on a blanket or on my bed with her, and after I was finished playing with her I put her in my wardrobe, she was my most precious possession.
To be honest she is still my favorite toy….My favorite Doll and Orange Car
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When I graduated and received my Photography Diploma I made a huge decision to change my photography genre.
I switched from being a Portrait Photographer to a Landscape and Nature photographer. This in itself was a huge step out of my comfort zone. I am not big on change. Change scare me, what if I fail, what if my photos are not good enough. What if I never sell a photo, a calendar or a photography book I can go on and on.
I love nature and my passion was never really photographing people. I tried to convince myself it was but when a client phoned to cancel a shoot I was relieved, not disappointed. While doing my photography diploma and the more I spend time photographing nature and landscapes I realized that I was much more at ease and also more creative. My lecturer commented that my nature and landscape photos are outstanding and that he think I am focusing on the wrong Genre….
When I look at other Landscape and Nature photographers websites and the books they publish they always have the most interesting stories about how it happened that they took the photo and why they chose it for their book or calendar.
As a new Landscape and Nature Photographer I also need to start using words to describe my photos. The problem is I am not big on words, I always thought that my photos do the talking…
This is why I joined Bloganuary 2022. I need to get comfortable writing and posting stories about my photos.
So in short, since I changed my Photography Genre everything I do to promote my work is pushing me outside my Comfort Zone…
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Today’s topic for Bloganuary 2022 is both an easy and difficult one to write about.
I got my love to travel from my parents, while growing up I can remember that we would go on a long road trip every second year during December or June Holidays. We lived in hotels, guest houses, at family and friends during our holidays.
I planned my first road trip with my boys and parents in 2010 during the World Cup Soccer Tournament. We traveled for 5 weeks and we had the time of our lives. Since then 99% of my road trips was shared with my parents and my children. My boys also love to travel and I am very happy to have given them the opportunity to also see part of our beautiful country. There are still a lot of places I have not visited and they are all on my Travel bucket list.
My Map of South Africa, Namibia and BotswanaRoad trips taken over the past few years.
It was my Mothers biggest wish to go to Namibia. On returning from our holiday at Pilanesberg National Park when Mom said that our next trip must be to Namibia. When we arrived home we started looking at places to stay and visit for our 2017 holiday in Namibia.
In October 2015 Mom passed away unexpectedly and we never spoke about Namibia again. I deleted all my planning because it was too painful to be reminded of her dream.
In 2019 Dad and I went to Scotland and made both our dreams come true. After returning home I started thinking of Namibia again. I began to watch programs on Namibia and then I got that urge to go in honor of Mom.
I have been looking at different places I want to visit and I will need at least 18 Days in Namibia to cover them all. If it is possible I would love to stay longer and explore more. This road trip will be the most expensive one I will undertake here. I will need at least R 67 000.00 for fuel, lodging, entry fees and food. I have started an Ko-fi account to help finance this dream.
Map Of Namibia
What is a road trip you would love to take? Namibia from top to bottom and from left to right….
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While growing up I had a solid relationship with both my parents. If I had a problem I could go to them and talked to them without the fear of being judged. We did not have lots of money and if we wanted something we had to work for it.
One thing I struggled with up to a few years ago was that I am good enough and that I will never make anything of my life.
As a teenager my parents always told me how proud they are of me, proud of my grades, proud of my commitment to succeed in Ballet, even though my body was not the right fit for a Ballerina, it did not stop me from going to Ballet Classes 5 times a week.
Still even with all my hard work and commitment I never thought that I was good enough. I had no self esteem and the older I got the more I believed myself. I stopped trying new things and kept to myself.
One day I met a lady who told me that I must know my worth and that I am worthy of everything that I want in life. I must stop thinking I am not good enough. Since that day I started changing my mindset and my life got so much easier.
The Advice I have for my Teenage Self is:
Always believe in yourself!
You are good enough!
Don’t take life so serious, enjoy time with your friends!
Believe your parents when they say they are proud of you!
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