He admired her. The way she lived completely out of the box . . . manning the desk at the imports store with a wink and a smile.

He offered her a deal. With art in hand, he proposed that it would become all hers . . . for one kiss.  She debated . . .

For so long she had been rebuilding a life . . . after raising her daughters the boy of her youth had hightailed it out of town moving to sunny CA with his new girl.

She drew in her circle. Found a studio apartment. Found a job. Found a life. Found her photography.

. . . she declined. The price was too high to pay.

And he became more fascinated with her.

How does the story end? I’ll tell you this . . . she has the shattered pieces of her sculpture in a box, tucked away in the attic. But that’s a tale for another day.

Closest I’ll get for quite awhile is the orchard on whose edge I live. And like clockwork, I greet my day with a long run among it’s paths. I never meet a car. I rarely meet a person. And when I run . . . my mind is my own. I let it take me wherever it needs to go for that hour. And when I finish, I savor the tabula rasa of an unencumbered mind. It’s my therapy. That’s why I’ve never had a piece of fitness equipment enter my home. I need the elements. I need the peace. I need my running shoes. I know . . .  it’s a little Forest Gumpy, but that’s how I roll.

The morning hour has gold in her mouth.

And I can’t forget to give a shout out to Eric Diamond, who gave me back my sanity!

Here’s what I do have. A stack of handwritten letters, sent to me my first month away at college. A father’s love posited in the small talk of chit chat from home to calm the heart of seventeen year old struggling to find her place. He resisted the urge to drive up and bring me home when I would pour out my heart to him from the wall phone at the end of  South corridor . . . he picked up his pen instead.

To me, he’s always been the cavalry.  He’s the one  I would go to when my foolish decisions had me buried under a ton of sludge. He’d listen through my tears, and then dig me out without letting me know that he was digging me out. He’s the man who still “pops over” to my house if the electrician is coming and I’m there alone. He’s my “you get one phone call” guy. Unflappable.

“You only spend your integrity once.”

“If you don’t want the answer, don’t ask the question.”

“Better than sliced bread.”

Dadisms. Of the very best kind.

Happy Father’s Day to the one who first taught me what it means to be a man.

I have a new snapshot to add  to the “wish I hads” . . .  two people sitting mid morning at the window table, watching passers-by walk along the sidewalk that they’ve traveled often, eating eggs benedict and talking about hopes, dreams, and realities.  Gets no better than that. I love you, Dad.

I got to talk to my 18 year old self over the weekend. I took the opportunity to speak the words that I needed me to hear all those years ago.

These friends you’re inviting into your dorm room on a hot Saturday afternoon, with whom you’ve shared the last eight months in your first foray from the comfort of your “home home” . . . these will be lifelong friends.

Cherish them.

You are craving your independence . . . wanting your life to REALLY begin.

Don’t wish these days away. College years give you the golden opportunity of authentic self-discovery. And all your choices, the good, the bad and the ugly, will shape you and strengthen you.

Embrace them.

Rachel, my sweet friend, who is ending her freshman year at York College knows this better than I ever did. She left for college with her heart full of hopes and dreams. Just three months into her first year she  lost her dad. Would  she would struggle through the remainder of her first year, heart heavy? Would she throw in the towel and come home?

nope.

I went back to campus for the first time in many years. I had my freshman roommates by my side and we visited Rachel’s Beard Hall dorm room.  Same old dorm rooms. Same old threadbare lounge furniture. Same old stale smell.  But the love and laughter were abounding. Rachel has her posse. She doesn’t know it right now, but those long lazy days are snapshots that she’ll pull out many times on her journey.

That group of friends from my first year at YCP . . . the ones  that know my good, bad and ugly, yet believe on the good . . .   they are some of my life’s richest blessings.

Love them.

I am inspired by their level of dedication and enthusiasm. Whether you have little ones or not, come see this show- you will leave feeling the love.

Directed by Shirley Dooley and Nancy Howard (who have both pitched their tents at the warehouse!) and supported by donations from our whole community, this production is everything that’s right and beautiful about community theatre! Several key builders in our community have dedicated hours and hours building our set and rigging the flying system and a special shout out goes to Jeni of Fandango Events who even got us a ship’s wheel!

And the best part? Every penny goes right back to the kids of Carroll County.

Young Life Carroll County Presents

Peter Pan

Six Shows to Choose From!

Friday              May 7      8pm                 Friday                 May 14  8pm

Saturday          May 8      8pm

Sunday            May 9      7pm                 Sunday                 May 16  2 pm & 7pm

Location:

Crossroads Community Church

895 Leidy Road in Westminster

(The old TSC Building off of 140)

Reserve Tickets in Advance: Call 410.239.0562 and leave your name, number of tickets needed, and date/time of performance.  Cash or check payment due upon pick up of your tickets from at the venue.

Purchase of tickets at the door cannot be guaranteed.

Ticket Prices:  $10.00  adults, $8.00  students,

$5  children 12 and under

Proceeds from the play go to Young Life Carroll County

We will be living with the snow for quite awhile, as the temps are supposed to stay below freezing all week. We’re expecting another big dump of snow tomorrow . . . so, why not make some memories??? Today, it was snow tunnels and igloo building.

And for some not so strange reason, the kids want to be wherever their Dad  is . . . he can make any situation a blast, all by his attitude. I think that’s part of the reason why I fell for him all those years ago . . . wherever he was, it was a party.

I love when our lives shut down for a big snow. It’s like  bonus days of catch-up/ snuggle days smack in the middle of winter. A little bit of productive . . . a whole lot of chillin’.

So, I think we got about 30″ this time. After digging out yesterday . . . yes, I’m a little sore across the shoulders today . . . we’re all set to be hunkered down. Finished research papers on T.S. Eliot and John Steinbeck. Now we’re onto melting popsicles for the science fair. Played Apples to Apples . . .watched a couple of movies . . . .alphabetized my spice cupboard . . . finished a book . . . oh, yea, and marinating some wings for the Superbowl tonight. And did I mention that this family can eat??? A huge pot of vegetable soup . . . double batch of noodles and marinara . . . gone.

And just look at the fun Micheal’s having in snow way over his head . . .

Sam knows he’s beat, so it’s a completely different attitude.

It’s all in the outlook. Hope you’re making the most of it!

Happy Snow Days!

I was kind of dreading jumping back into school today, but it’s been fun! We went to the library and read all about the everglades . . . the exotic birds and the alligators . . . about sea urchins and star fish . . . I had so much fun sharing all the exciting things that I did and saw. I am always astounded at the power of a couple of days in the sunshine.

Popped over to answer the onslaught of emails . . .and Woot! Look at the good news that came through.  It’s only because I have such wonderfully encouraging clients who bend over backwards for me. So, to my 2009 brides . . . each one of you . . . thank you from the bottom of my heart for the way that you feed my soul.

Baltimore, MD. 01.19.10 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced Kathy Freundel Photography has been selected to receive the 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™ for Excellence in Photo Journalism!

The annual Bride’s Choice Awards™ recognizes and celebrates excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry, as determined by recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 500,000 newlyweds.

Kathy Freundel Photography is among the top five percent of all vendors in the WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding professionals across the US and Canada. Awards were given to winners across 19 different service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers.

“We are excited to recognize and honor the success of the top wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Community” said Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “The annual Bride’s Choice Awards™ program has given us the unique opportunity to highlight the best wedding professionals in each region as reviewed by brides and grooms who have utilized their services in the past year.”

We are happy to announce that Kathy Freundel is among the very best wedding photojournalists within the WeddingWire Network, which includes WeddingWire and Martha Stewart Weddings.

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Got me thinking. How do I live without a net?

Four years ago, Andrea asked me a loaded question.

“What would you do if you knew that you couldn’t fail?”

“I’d be a photographer. For real,” I answered quickly, without really thinking too much about it.

“What’s stopping you?”

hmmm. I could have answered that question with tons of valid excuses.

But it came down to fear. Fear that I’d fail.

It’s living without a net. Knowing that Jesus is the net above me, beside me, before me, behind me . . . and that at every turn, He already knew it was coming and has it covered. (and believe me, there have been some hairpin turns on the journey). It’s trusting that He knows exactly what I need even better than I. So, as long as I stay connected, take the steps through the open doors, windows and crevices . . . and dream big huge dreams . . . I’m living without the net.

But it’s also about surrounding myself with the voice of truth on all sides. It’s about loving myself . . . the shortcomings, the wrinkles, the things I let slide, and things I hold dear to.

It’s about letting my freak flag fly . . .

So, what would YOU do if you knew you couldn’t fail???

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