Tuesday, January 3^rd, 6 A.M., a very brisk 30 degree morning. I lay here looking for excuses not to put my underarmer on and rev my engine.  There isn’t one iota of excitement about putting that little black lens up to my eyeball, yet I can hear the call.  As I extract myself from these toasty sheets my mind ponders if any other local Wiseite is feeling the same lack-a-daisical attitude about getting back into the mix?  I feel it. The residual holiday molly-grubs are gnawing at me. Do you feel it?

Maybe the pendulum has swung too far to the right after being at its high point on the left.  Beginning around Thanksgiving the pendulum, which has seemed fairly balanced since the Fourth of July, begins to swing to the left.  It continues its ascent on through the month of December and climaxes around New Year’s Eve.  The high energy of preparations to reconnect with family and friends leads us to an intensity reserved for “the holiday season”.  Our undivided energy downshifts into third gear and we are at full throttle … giving, sharing and focusing on others.  We let our hair down and give ourselves permission to eat more, drink more, shop more and generally allow ourselves to enjoy life more.  The “season” is in full swing.

Now the “holiday season” has come to a screeching halt!  There’s just one issue I have with that.  It seems as though one of my feet is stuck in 2011 and doesn’t want to step over into 2012 with any kind of exuberance.  After all I’ve just experienced one of my top five Christmas’s ever!! The last few days of “withdrawal symptoms” have been painful.  As my sons and their families return to their daily routines in various locations around the planet my mind is unwilling to accept this change. I find myself longing for more time, more hugs, more smiles, more memories …

As I drove around Wise County at pre-dawn this morning it came back to me.  Every event has a beginning and an ending.  My privilege to begin 2012 in Wise County and to record life as it happens here is priceless.  Each time one of you expresses gratefulness to me for a photo of a family member or of an event or for one of my columns – I am renewed and catapulted to a greater awareness.  Thank you! 

I’ve always said there are two types of photographers – the one who looks for an excuse to take a great photo and the one who looks for an excuse not to.  My switch lever appears to be stuck in slow motion as my quest for the perfect balance reassures me I’ll be back in high throttle soon enough.  Have you made the switch?