Picture Perfect

The first camera I ever owned was a Polaroid instant camera that my brother Jerry gave me when I was 10 years old, not too long before he was involved in a traffic accident that took his life. I took that camera everywhere with me, and I took pictures of anything and everything. Until Mom said that she would only buy me one pack of film each month ... that slowed down my picture taking and made me much more selective about the photos I took. I think about that Polaroid sometimes when I'm snapping hundreds of pictures in quick succession with my digital SLR camera, about how technology has advanced through the years and how much the art of photography has changed.

Last weekend, I took engagement photos for a sweet young couple that is embarking on a new phase of life in a few months. As I snapped photo after photo of the two of them as they laughed and smiled and gazed into each others' eyes, it was obvious that their love for one another was strong and deep. I walked away from the photo session thinking ... these two are going to make it together ... these two will last through all that life will throw at them ... these two are the real thing. Unfortunately, I don't always have that feeling when I shoot engagement or wedding pictures for couples. Sometimes I leave wondering if the seas ahead of them are going to be incredibly choppy and rough and if they will be able to weather the storms.

One of the things that impressed me so about the young couple from last weekend was that they weren't at all worried about "perfection." Their clothing was casual, their hair was askew from the strong wind, they even got their shoes wet crossing a small creek. They didn't care if the pictures were perfect, and they told me so before I ever snapped one shot. They wanted "real" photos, not "perfect" ones ... photos that will shout to everyone who sees them that these two kids are happy just being who they are. They have no need to impress anyone else because they are confident in whom they are as individuals and in whom they are as a couple. And I've gotta tell you ... it was a cool thing to see, a very cool thing to see.

I've been thinking a lot about the whole concept of perfection ... of how we often expect it in others and in ourselves as well. When people don't live up to our expectations, we toss them away and move on in search of someone who more closely measures up to our standards. When I am less than perfect in my own actions or words or thoughts, I feel like a failure and torture myself with the "I should do better" chant. Even the little wiener dog who is staying with me ... because people are searching for perfection and he's got some scars on his face, no one wants him. Sad, but so very true ... many of us want perfection rather than realness.

I'm so very thankful that God never expects me to be perfect; in fact, He knows I never will be perfect. He knows that it's in my times of greatest weakness that He can demonstrate His all-powerful strength. He knows the realness of who I am, not the picture perfect look I may display to others.

And you know what else? He loves me anyway. He loves me abundantly. He loves me always. He just loves me. No qualifiers ... not if I look a certain way, if I behave a certain way, if I feel a certain way. He just loves me. And He loves you, too.