Category: Photography

Friday Photo: Some Soup and a Story

Posted on January 14, 2012 by Jennifer Wolfe

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou

For a moment on Wednesday night, I was worried. 20 freshmen and sophomores, gas stoves, sharp knives and the need to prepare and serve dinner for 40+ people in less than an hour? I questioned my choices.

As my students trickled into the shelter that night I quickly jumped into teacher mode and soon had the industrial sized kitchen humming with activity. Onions were chopped, meat was browning, cornbread was mixing up and tables were being set.

Little by little, my nervousness was replaced by problem solving. No measuring cup? No problem – use an app to convert cups to tablespoons. No, I don’t know how to use an industrial sized coffee maker – find someone to help you. And they did.

After a while, any passerby might have thought these kids were running the kitchen of the best restaurant in town. They were even wiping up after themselves! As they cooked they bonded with each other, and eased their own jitters about meeting the strangers waiting outside the door.

The real lesson came after the food was prepared and the homeless guests lined up to be served. With eagerness and compassion, these children served men and women who were actually not so different from themselves. Slowly they ventured towards the dinner tables

Sitting side by side and sharing a meal broke down the scariness. Stories began to move back and forth, child and adult bonding over simple food and a common desire to get to know each other’s story. I stood back and watched the transformation, and beamed with pride at the acts of compassionate justice occurring before my eyes.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Friday Photo: In The Moment

Posted on January 7, 2012 by Jennifer Wolfe

Taking a road trip can be a stressful experience. There is the planning, the packing, the money, the time, the scheduling – all that can make leaving the house a real hassle. Adding into the mix any sort of scheduled activity just further complicates the matter. Then, tossing in children, pets and a spouse and most moms would rather stay home.

This week all my best-laid plans completely turned upside down and I found myself needing to make an unexpected 260-mile road trip on Friday afternoon. Logistically and rationally, it didn’t make any sense, but nevertheless I booked a hotel, packed my bags, took off from work a few hours early and loaded my daughter and her ski gear into the car and headed for the southeastern Sierras.

Being the type of planning oriented person I am, spontaneity can often really stress me out. Having children

is teaching me that sometimes life is unplanned, uncontrolled, and I’d better just learn to go with it. I’m

trying to take life as it comes, but sometimes it’s really hard. Like many things in life, the more I practice

the easier it becomes. Still, stress otfen wins out until I’ve slammed the door shut and there’s no

turning back.

After several hours of cruising down highway 395 we crested a pass and before us lay the most awesome expanse of Mono Lake. Descending the hill and climbing closer and closer to the shore the sun began to set, encircling us with a cotton candy pink glow. As the highway lined the lake I began to see a white edging against the jade green water, and ice cream cone shaped ivory turrets starkly jutting up out of the lake. Snow? The rest of the landscape was dry and brown, so I began to look deeper. I stopped to get a closer look, and realized that what appeared to be snow was simply rock taking on a different hue at that precise moment as the sun went down.

Hopping back in the car, I realized how lucky I was to be in that exact place that exact moment with

daughter by my side. I realized that if I hadn’t let go, if I had resisted and refused to change plans, this

day would have been very different. What I saw with my eyes was awe-inspiring, and what I saw with

my heart was awe inducing. That simple moment with my daughter reminded me of the power of being

present, and the weakness of being in control.

So when you think of the days and plans you have in front of you, imagine what would happen if

you stopped, let something slide, and slipped into the present. What would take on a different hue for you?

Jennifer Wolfe

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Questions and Answers

Posted on December 31, 2011 by Jennifer Wolfe

“There are years that ask questions and years that answer.”

– Zora Neale Hurston

Zora had a point. We all may start off each new year with our to-do and to-don’t lists, our resolutions, our diet plans, our financial makeovers, travel itineraries and dreams for the upcoming year, but somewhere things always seem to go a little off course.

There’s a reason why gym memberships and weight loss centers see a spike in memberships in January and a decline just a few months later. Humans just seem to operate that way. What seems ‘good’ or ‘right’ or ‘popular’ in one moment can quickly fade to black in another.

Today’s world is creating a culture that allows and even encourages shallow thinking. Instant messaging, texting, information at our fingertips and the ability to lose ourselves in games, videos and social media that we carry in our pockets fosters constant mind chatter. Working parents and over scheduled kids find it easier to succumb to these temptations, seduced by the images and messages of what ‘we’ should be like, look like, and act like. Sadly, many of these icons are just as lost as the people who are finding solace in their stories.

Perhaps what we need to do most is re-look at the way we see ourselves. By focusing on the ‘issues’ we see in our lives we deny the deeper, richer, more powerful parts to surface. Comparing ourselves to some media enhanced ideal of the perfect mother, father, parent, student, child, family or athlete surely places us in a state of lack. Instead, finding solitude and time alone may allow us to relax and listen for what is really meaningful and valuable, and give us a chance to question what is missing in our lives.

What if we intentionally go into this new year to either ask for questions or search for answers in our lives? What if we push aside all the lists and resolutions and instead resolve to look within? What if we spent 10 minutes a day on ourselves, in solitude, asking and listening for answers and resolving to trust in the messages we receive? What would happen? Would that be scary? What would shift in our lives?

This year, let’s set ourselves up for success. Throw out that resolution list and instead use that time to plan a daily session of solitude. Ask questions. Listen for the answers. Choose this year to be the one that makes a difference.

You might just amaze yourself.

Jennifer Wolfe

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Friday Photo: On The Flip Side

Posted on December 30, 2011 by Jennifer Wolfe

I’m spending my winter break in the snow. Actually, that’s not entirely true. Like a good ski racer mom should, I’m spending my winter break in the mountains, at the ski hill.

We’re just missing the snow.

At first it was kind of nice-the weather was clear and cold and the snow making machines were doing their thing day and night. We could hardly tell the difference. I enjoyed not having to slog through snowbanks from the car to the cabin. Hauling luggage and groceries was much easier, and I haven’t even had to take the snow shovel out once.

Then it warmed up.

Suddenly I wasn’t spending my mornings and afternoons on the slopes. Instead, the lodge became my home for seven hours a day. Outside the windows I could watch the dirt streaks appear and the rocks uncovered. Morale was going down on all fronts.

Aside from learning a snow dance, I needed to do something different. As I set off on a walk in the afternoon, I began to make startling discoveries-there was more to this place than snow. The simple, stark beauty of winter dormancy took hold of me, and I found myself snapping photo after photo. This image was taken on the border of the Alpine Meadows Ski Resort, where I spend many days during the winter months.

As I looked at this little frozen creek I realized that the lack of snow wasn’t altogether bad. I thought about how we often wish for the familiar, the known. These are the places we feel comfortable and safe – and predictable.

I’m learning that if we look at the flip side, though, we can see some pretty amazing things, and that by turning our perspective around life looks beautiful, just in a different way.

What can you flip over and discover in your life today?

Jennifer Wolfe

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Friday Photo: Shifting Gears

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Jennifer Wolfe

The week before winter break is never easy for a middle school teacher. The combination of high energy and anticipation levels of the students juxtaposed with the need to finish units, projects and assessments makes for an exhausting experience. Add to that the needs of my own children at home, the cards, gifts and holiday cheer and I am not sure if I am coming or going.

Late last night as Leno wrapped up his monologue, I catch myself in an unsettling space between gearing up and winding down. A kaleidoscope of ‘to-dos’ spins through my mind. Fortunately, sleep kicks in, and eight short hours later, I have a flash of clarity.

After driving through the mountains in the predawn hours, my son and I pass Donner Lake, and in that moment, as the water and sky met and steam hissed from its surface, I quickly stop the car. My brain pauses and we drink in the tranquility of the water before us. Silently I breathe deeply, wait, and shift back into gear with a new sense of calm.

Try it. Breathe. Pause. Wait. Shift.

Jennifer Wolfe

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