After-Christmas wishes

And when Aaron came to the entrance of the stable, he could hardly believe what he saw. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.

Aaron: Oh, your majesty, you must…

African King: Shh… Oh, the player boy.

Aaron: My lamb has been injured! You must save him!

King: He is near death. Oh, lad, there is nothing I can do.

Aaron: But…but you are a king!

King: A mortal king only. But there is a King among Kings who would save your little friend.

Aaron: The babe? But, I do not understand!

King: It is not necessary that you understand. Go to Him.

Aaron: But…I…I have no gift to bring!

King: Go. Look upon the newborn King.

And as Aaron looked at the babe, he thought it was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

Aaron: And yet, there is something more about Him. So much more.

King: Your gift, little drummer boy, given out the simple desperation of a pure love is the one favored above all. See?

~from the 1968 Rankin-Bass animated film, The Little Drummer Boy

If you have not watched this short (23-minute) film, you are missing a beautiful story that transcends race, culture, creed and religion. I watch it every year with my kids, and every year I cry. The little drummer boy does not have a tangible gift for the newborn Jesus, but he plays his drum for him in order to save his injured lamb. The final words of the narrator say it all: Aaron’s heart was filled with joy and love, and he knew at last that the hate he had carried there was wrong, as all hatred will ever be wrong. For more powerful, more beautiful by far than all the eons of sadness and cruelty and desolation which had come before, was that one tiny crystalline second of laughter. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God! I hope every one of you who reads this had a wonderful, peaceful, inspiring Christmas, regardless of what or how you celebrate during the winter break. May you find love and beauty in abundance, and may grief and despair be fleeting.

Big, Brown Eyes, plus a Really Happy Mutt

Howdy!

I was in the right place at the right time with my boys for these shots. The room had these floor to ceiling, frosted glass windows and this cool, heavily textured grey wallpaper. Happily, I had my camera with me, and M & Z were willing to cooperate. Snap!

Later that day, I got a lucky shot of my dog, Gypsy. This image really captures her energy and sweet spirit. She smiles like that all the time.

Enjoy!

K

P.S. I am a lover of quotes so you will see them sprinkled here and there...I'll close with this one, which is one of my favorites:

Hours fly. Flowers die. New days, New ways, Pass by.

Love stays.

(don't know who wrote that but I wish it were me!)

Some work from earlier this year...

Greetings!

I don't plan to be a daily blogger but I felt compelled not to have just one lonely post. Also, I am excited to use this space to show some of my recent work! I just delivered some canvases to a client (who is seriously the best client I could ask for in terms of being excited about the work I've done for her), and they turned out fabulously. Beautiful kids + beautiful morning = successful shoot. These are a couple of the images from that session.

May the beauty around you never cease to inspire you...

K

Welcome to my blog!

Okay, so I finally decided to create a blog.

I'm holding off on Facebook for now, but I have been needing a blog for my photography business.

So...welcome!

I hope you enjoy my work. I sure do enjoy creating it. I thank God every day for giving me this gift -- capturing little slivers of time for folks to enjoy.

Please contact me via e-mail with any inquiries: sarantakesk@yahoo.com.

Thanks for visiting, and may you see the beauty in ordinary things...