The Did Nots and the Dids

I take pictures of my feet.

Cape May, NJ

I wish I could say this is an odd happenstance which started recently, but I’ve been putting these bad boys on display since my teen days of getting lost in the woods with my fellow wanderer, Amy, all while we documented the process on video recorder*.

*Yes, teens of today, we did not have the ease of cell phones to record ourselves doing stupid things, but instead had to use a clunky, handheld recorder. At least it saved us from sharing said adventures prematurely with the world.

Rome, Italy

While Amy was prepping to take on some challenge like riding her bike down a steep hill, I was filling video space with shots of my scuffed-up Nikes.

The Met, NYC

I’m not sure when it began or why. Perhaps a beautifully tiled floor grabbed my attention. Or maybe I loved the shoes I was wearing that day, but my feet have managed to star in at least one photograph of any trip I have taken.

Burlington, VT

It’s reached such a point; I have a file on my computer titled: FEET.

Brooklyn, NY

If you know my stance on the selfie*, then you can understand how I find my feet an easier subject to photograph than myself.

*I despise them.

NOLA

And speaking of me, I celebrated another birthday this week.

I’m somewhat reluctant to bring up my birthday. I’m one of those people who is always celebrating their 25^th and am fortunate enough to have a few friends who play along with this charade. The 5^th anniversary of my 25^th I spent outside of New Jersey, trying to forget about the number associated with the longevity of my time on this earth.

Wildwood, NJ

I know it’s silly. But sometimes my birthday is a reminder of all I haven’t done yet. It is this looming number which says you can’t, you won’t.

Baltimore, MD

After a weekend where Hubby gave up CPA study time to celebrate me, I’m revisiting my FEET folder with a focus on the lengths my feet have carried me all these years.

Streets of NYC on my birthday, starring guest feet of Hubby

One year is packed with so many people, places, and things, yet when I reach its end, I tend to let my focus wander to the did nots instead of the dids.

Instead of focusing on the did nots this year, I plan to set my sights on the dids. The things I have done. The good which has happened. The small victories and the large triumphs.

The High Line, NYC

When your special day comes, I challenge you to do the same.