October 29. “A single idea can transform a person, a life, a business, a nation, a world.”(Anonymous)

In early November of 2005 I was struggling for an idea of what to get my mother for Christmas. She was in an assisted living facility, and was difficult to shop for. My wife and I would get her clothes and such, but I wanted something that would stand out a bit more.

I was at work and mentioning this to a friend who suggested that I make my mom a calendar. This friend told me that she’d done it for her family. She explained that I could assemble my pictures and send them off to Walgreens and they would take a couple of weeks and send back a finished product. I thought, why not?

So, I set off to make pages for my mom. It took a bit of time. This was before I had a digital camera, so I had to scan in the photos I used. When it was done I sent it off to Walgreens, and a couple of weeks before Christmas it arrived. When my wife saw it, she loved it and wanted one for her mother. The problem was that it was too late to make one and send it to Walgreens, so I had to figure out how to make one myself, print it, and get it bound. I did figure it out, and my Falls haven’t been the same since

Over the years what started as something for my mother and mother-in-law has grown. Today I make calendars for many of my family members and closest friends. It takes me most of the Fall to get it done.

I know this quote is meant to be something more high minded than this, but it speaks to me on this level. What started as a single idea – make my mom a calendar – has transformed me. While I am known on my blog as Bobby-C, one of my more common nicknames is actually Bobarazzi. I am like the paparazzi at any gathering of friends and family. I take literally thousands of pictures every year, and gather hundreds more from friends and family to help with the project. It has become a passion of mine.

Sometimes it only takes a single thought, a single idea to change a person’s perspective. I look at things differently now when I am in family gatherings, or when I am out in nature. I have taken up a far more serious look at photography than I did in years past, but more importantly, I take a different look at relationships.

Today my reflection is on how that one spark of an idea has changed how I look at so many things in my life. This weekend, in addition to catching up on my blog, I will be working on those calendars. I will agonize over the details, and will enjoy every second of it!