I’m happy to introduce our guest muse for today, Kelly Ishmael. You may recall that our theme in March was “Around Me“. Kelly was inspired by that theme and is here to share her adventure and what she found on her morning run around her neighborhood. Read on to see what she discovered just by going in the opposite direction one day. Lesson learned: it’s always good to shake things up a little. ~Christy

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“I don’t like to be out of my comfort zone, which is about a half an inch wide.”
~Larry David 

To say that I am a creature of habit is the understatement of the century. Everyday it’s pretty much the same the thing…go to work, come home, try to figure out what I’m going to make for dinner, try to fit in some photography and/or laundry. Confession… photography almost always wins that battle.

Anyway, this past winter I found myself in a happy little rut at home. Which I am the first to admit that I am a total homebody.  But honestly, I had taken it to a whole new level …possibly even venturing into hermit territory. That is until one nice late winter day when I actually went outside to run instead of staying inside and running on the treadmill.  I was amazed to see that spring was starting to emerge and was like, ‘When did this happen??’

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Obviously the answer was while I was on the treadmill watching Ellen and Friends reruns.

This little discovery really opened my eyes to the fact that I needed to get out more…in a big way.  And it just so happened that the Muse Theme for the month of March was ‘Around Me.’  So it became clear to me that the universe was trying to tell me something – I love it when that happens – and this synchronicity kinda played like music in the background of my mind.

Well so one gorgeous morning not long after that, I set out for my run.  But instead of going my usual path, I decided to shake things up a bit and head off in the opposite direction.

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About a half mile into my run, I wound up at Swan Lake. Which as the name implies, is a small lake with several varieties of ducks and geese and one beautiful pair of swans.

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So I’m running along the side walk watching the geese and ducks play…honestly, it was just so delightful and I found myself smiling like a complete idiot. And the funny thing is, I’ve been to Swan Lake a thousand times. But that particular day it was almost like a whole new world had opened up in front of my eyes.

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I was so excited about my new ‘discovery’ that I, literally, ran home as fast as I could and grabbed my camera and went back to the park.

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It’s amazing what happens when you get out of your comfort zone.

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There’s a whole new world just waiting to be seen. I just had to actually get out of my house and learn to see it.

I love that about photography.

Kelly, thank you so much for joining us here today! Kelly Ishmael is a wife, mom, nature lover, nostalgia junkie, and hobbyist photographer.  She is passionate about finding joy and beauty in her ordinary life and loves sharing it on her blog and on flickr

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If you would like to be considered as a future guest muse, please email us at mortalmuses9@gmail.com or contact us here.