the secret is out

for anyone who may look from time to time to see if i have updated this blog, this update will come as a surprise to you.  as in surprise, surprise...i am not a very good blogger or i should say a consistant blogger. 

i have been busy though...busy doing and busy thinking.  i am constantly reminded of the question(s)...where will you be in five, ten, twenty years? i have thought long and hard about it. and i have determined that in order to find out where the next five, ten or twenty years will take me, i must first discover who i am today.  so, i am challenging myself to open up, peel back my layers and discover who i am.

for some of you, you may think how can you not know who you are? you must have some idea...or you might say...what? you're shannon, the girl that makes me laugh or the girl that likes martini's (ok...loves) and sometimes has 1 or 2 too many glasses of wine or the girl you know who has survived cancer (so far). to some i may even be who you call to take photos of your special moments. but i am not too good at opening up so...

let me introduce you...i am a girl raised with good intentions. a girl raised on her mother's dreams. a girl pushed to always to the 'right' thing according to my parents rules. raised baptist, in and out of church. put in a private christian school, i think for a better education, but also because i had a crush on a boy who was of a different nationality.  creativity was for kindergarten, art class and creative writing, but creativity doesn't pay the bills. i am a girl raised as an only child...i would even go so far as to say spoiled. i have two step sisters, 2 nieces and 2 nephews. i have an older brother. we don't talk about him very much because the life he has chosen is a life behind bars. I am a girl that has safely tucked away the pain and embarrassment he caused as he was in and out of trouble. i am also a girl that has learned to deal with uncomfortable moments or painful thoughts by tucking them away or by making jokes. i do not have vivid recollections of childhood because i think i have tucked them away in this other place.  my spirit was softened and creativity stepped on. i was browbeat. i did not talk back and mostly did what i was told. i wrapped myself in my outgoing personality, telling jokes...sometimes at the expense of others. this is honest. this is true. i have always felt an emptiness inside me perhaps it was my soul needing to breathe. somewhere in my late twenties, it happened. i chose to stand up and have my own voice. i met my husband when i stopped pretending and was 'just me'. meeting him has completely changed everything for me. instead of being put down for exploring my creativity and dreams, i was being encouraged. i slowly...very slowly...started exploring this world that for so long was unreachable. it is hard to dig deep. i am finding it hard to go back.

what have i discovered so far? i am enjoying making my own rules.  discovering my own right from wrong. i am a chamelion...in so many ways. that's always been something i have disliked about myself. i change my mind every five minutes.  i don't necessarily love one thing.  i tend to follow my mood. i look at outfits and love certain styles, not just one. i used to get frustrated now i am on the road to embracing it. i mean, why do i have to have one style...why can't i like several things? i really, really, really like chuck taylors and always have. i am hi-top pink all the way. if i didn't think i would be fired from my corporate job, i would pierce my nose in an instant. i really love being a gemini. i like having multiple personalities...it really fits in well with the chamilion charm. i think there is something very mystical about a dragonfly. i am a total dreamer and in my world things are wonderful all the time. i really want and crave a deep connection with jesus. i find daily strength in being a survivor of ovarian cancer. i am blessed without a doubt to have the husband i do...my soulmate. i really want to stop cursing, but find that i really enjoy it. i love that i am from the south and know the difference between price's chicken and kfc. i love sweet tea. i love cheerwine from a glass bottle. i really like any type of music that makes my foot tap. the banjo may very well be my favorite instrument  and i wouldn't turn down a lesson. i like getting around my family and 'that certain group of friends' and letting my deep southern accent loose...it really is another language. i really like taking pictures of people mainly because i find stories fascinating...finding out the make-up of a family. i like to laugh but don't do it near enough. i am discovering the more i am still and quiet, the more i see and learn...the deeper the story.


i feel like what i am learning are things i already knew but covered up with layers.  i guess you could say i am kind of in the process of reinvention.  kind of like the church we visited recently renovatus (latin for renovation).  so with all this new profound knowledge i am learning, i intend to wrap my arms around my spirit and continue to unravel all things inside.  i intend to capture my thoughts with my lens. that is my challenge to myself. i will document my journey here. i really mean it.  so check back.

Recipe for 2011

Our recipe starts with a big bowl of good ol' fashioned God.  Take an entire JJ and an entire Shannon and add a full helping of deeper commitment; add as needed until you get the consistency of a stronger relationship.  Pour in a box of finance and stir.  This will make the base a little lumpy but that's ok.  Add 1/10th of a cup of charity.  This will help even out some of those lumps.  Mix diligently while adding financial peace.  Stir in creativity with a handful of time and mix until well blended.  Add in as much weightloss as desired.  Keep mixing and using a funnel, add organization.  Take a few smiles and laughter and mix with each day.  Bake at 365 for 24/7.  Sprikle with a little fariy dust and rainbow skittles. Sweet Tea goes along well with this recipe as does ice cream for dessert.

Here's to your new year and hoping 2011 is as fabulous as you want it to be:)