A Much Needed Perspective

To say that life is nothing like I ever imagined is an understatement on so many levels; starting with my year at Hallmark Institute of Photography at nineteen years old, engaged to Ralph, and saying that I didn't want kids because I didn't want them to "get in the way of my photography career." Now we have three of them and I have been homeschooling all of them from day one. Case in point.

Aside from still being married to Ralph and doing photography, not a whole lot else feels the same to me. Feelings...so deceiving. I am not taking the time to reflect on that statement any further today... You're welcome. ;]

No, life right now doesn't look like what I had hoped or what I had believed was best for our family. I had nothing but pure motives and a Christ centered outlook on it all, but it didn't work. A part of me would love to get into all of this, but a gentle hand from the Lord has been placed over my mouth to not speak further. I have felt this clear command to be silent for the last seven months and I have no desire to disobey the creator of the universe.

While going through photos from this past May, I came across these below that I had totally forgotten about. It was the day before the boys and I were set to drive to Buffalo, NY for the first time without Ralph for some photography work. I haven't posted anything from that trip yet, but it was a tremendous blessing. We are about to return to Buffalo for more work (praise God), so we'll see if I will have time to share or not!

Prior to these photos, Ralph had been gone all day at work and had to squeeze putting new brakes on our van. He still had to put the wheels back on and bleed the brakes when I encouraged him to include the boys in these less frustrating processes. Though he is mechanically skilled, car repairs and Ralph are not friends.

Today, and three months later, as I was going through the photos, the thought continued in my mind: No, life is not like what I had hoped it would look like, but Ralph and I are still doing what we can to invest in our boys. In the dark, in the heat, and long past bedtime, we're convicted to raise them to be Godly men in men's bodies. This is just one, short glimpse of that.

No matter how messy, heavy, or tiring my life gets, I won't stop documenting it, even if I can't touch the photos for months (or years). Even if no one gets to see them except for me. The camera has been my faithful companion since I was in elementary school that helps me not only to remember, but gives me the right perspective on how quickly the time passes. These photos and the people pictured in them, are treasures to me.

Thanks for taking some of your valuable time to read this and look!

Simply,

Courtney Campbell