Mom Knows Best

I was sitting in the saddle on a ticking time bomb instead of our typically placid, relaxed half-Arab mare. I could feel every firing muscle fiber vibrate from Whisper’s back through the saddle, igniting my own twitching fear. It traveled through my seat, down my arms to my hands now clamped on the reins.

I was 10 years old, heading into my first native costume class at an Arab horse show in Springfield. It was a summer Saturday night and the light from the indoor arena melted out onto the blacktop where groups of horses and riders were waiting for their class to be called into the arena.

A native costume class at an Arabian horse show looks like the set of Lawrence of Arabia meets the Hollywood strip. Sequins, spangles and jewels decorate upholstery-covered saddles, braided bridles, harem pants and capes. Horses are judged at a walk, canter and hand-gallop both ways of the arena.

It is a fun, glitzy class and I had waited not so patiently for my turn to show Whisper in a native costume class. My mom had shown her in the same class at other shows and the mare didn’t mind the glitz and glamour. She was an even-tempered, steady horse who gave you an honest ride. Not much rattled her. But she was rattled and scared on this Saturday night. Buggies and carts were rolling out of the arena from the previous class and Whisper was terrified of buggies. This might have been her worst nightmare come true… buggies and carts were everywhere around her. Poor Whisper!

My mom held the mare still while my dad boosted me up. As soon as my butt settled into the saddle, I could feel Whisper’s terror. And my mom, at the mare’s head, could see the fear glazing over Whisper’s eyes. With her hands gripping the reins, Mom moved the mare forward, which happened in a stiff-legged frog leap. Shod hooves clattered and skidded on slick pavement. When I dared to open my eyes and look at my mom, I saw a grim look of worry quickly masked by attempted calm cross her face.

“Get off” she muttered to me. “Get off now.”

Mom was scared, which didn’t happen often. But I, usually an extremely timid rider, squeaked a tremulous “No.”

I was terrified but I also had waited a long time to show in this class. I was determined that I would at least make a few circuits around the arena. That is when Mom did what moms do: she led me through the gate and instead of letting us go after passing through the gate, she continued to lead me and our frog-leaping mare down the rail as the rest of the class filled in behind us, far behind us, thankfully! The arena organ, normally pounding out “At a Persian Market” for a costume class, was silent. All eyes watched Whisper lurch her way down the rail, my mother determinedly in tow. The only sounds were the snorts blasting from Whisper’s nostrils, the thud of her hooves as dug into the tanbark for the next leap and my mom’s quiet repetition of “Walk, Whisper, easy.” Finally, when we reached the end of the straightaway, Whisper stopped her lurching and the judge calmly spoke.

“I think you can let her go now, Mom.” Mom didn’t say a word but turned her head and looked at me, eyebrows raised in question. She wasn’t letting go because someone was telling her to do it. She was going to be sure I was ready for her to let go.

“Okay.” I answered. I was still scared but I knew it was time. Her hands left the reins and she turned and walked out of the arena. I was on my own.

Fun and Lessons Learned at the Auction

I attended my first auction this past weekend—it was quite the learning experience! The location was a photography studio that closed after over 60 years of business. It was rather sad that a business that had been such a fixture in town for so long was shuttered and being auctioned off piece by piece. I heard the refrain “I had my senior photo taken here” uttered several times by auction attendees. However, I was familiar with the studio and needed some new props in my own studio so off my husband and I went to the auction to see what could be had.

I had initially thought I would only be looking to purchase photography and studio equipment but I got my feet wet with a $.50 bid on some blue glass Ball jars. I ended up getting not only the Ball jars but a bunch of glassware and coffee mugs... all for $.50! That got the adrenaline going pretty quickly. Before I knew it, I had my box of blue Ball jars, four boxes of glassware and coffee cups, a box of old light meters and flash equipment and a Mamiya 645 medium format camera. And I was still under $100. How exciting!

Then came the learning experience part. All of the props were gathered as one lot with the highest bidder getting to choose which pieces they wanted. Somehow, I interpreted that as the highest bidder got to take as many pieces of the lot for their bid price... so not the case! You get each piece for the bid price. So I chose six of the best pieces from the lot. I was so excited (inwardly, though, because it’s not cool to look too excited at these auctions!) Imagine the bargain I thought I had! Then I happened to glance at the auction sheet and saw my total. I about keeled over once I did the math in my head but it certainly was too late to put the items back. After I recovered my wits, I found my husband and told him of my new purchases to which he laughingly replied, “I thought you knew what ‘choice’ meant!” Ha, ha, so did I! I certainly do now!

In the end, I got some sorely needed new props in the studio, a few other pieces of camera equipment, some blue glass Ball jars and a whole bunch of coffee cups (anyone need coffee cups?) Now comes the fun part—I get to test out my new props!

I am a photographer.

I have worked other jobs and I have several titles in life. I am a mom, a wife, and a daughter. I’ve been a paralegal, manager of a retail store, aerobics instructor, cheerleading coach. I’ve worked as a data entry clerk, a secretary, a graphic designer. But one thing has remained constant throughout all segments of my life and that is my love of creating photographs.

It started with a Canon AE-1 that I “borrowed” from my dad when I was in college (he is still waiting to get it back!) I worked on the college yearbook and wanted to shoot some football. With AE-1 in tow, I stepped onto the sidelines of a game and I was hooked. I loved the action, the excitement, the blood, sweat and tears and I loved the idea that I could capture it all on film and relive it at a later date.

Today, I do portrait work, focusing on babies and children, high school seniors, pets and horses and occasionally, a little high school football. While the subject matter may have changed, I am still in love with the idea that I can borrow a small moment in time while capturing the emotions and personalities of the people or animals that I am photographing. Time stands still when I am on a shoot and all that matters is the subject I am focused on.

I see in pictures, even when I don’t have a camera in hand. Photography has made me stop rushing through life and look for a moment that makes me smile, tugs on my heart or takes my breath away. It is a bonus when I do have a camera in hand and can store that moment forever. That is why I am a photographer.