I'm a Loser, I'm a Winner

So judging from the title of this post, ya'all probably thought I'd go into some rant about not having any friends or something. Ha. Shows what you know.

This post shall be about something I've kept pretty quiet about on here. Back a few months ago this summer, I was texted a flyer by a few different people about a photo contest the hospital was having. I decided to give it a go, though I am not a landscape photographer and know full well I'm no good at it.

The rules were that I could submit up to 20 photos and really, that was it. No other rules.

I decided that if I was going to have a chance, well then I better get busy because it was probably going to take 19 tries to get one good one.

So I took my camera everywhere and tried, and didn't do so well, to take good photos. And then the deadline came and I submitted 20 ho-hum photos. And then came the waiting... and waiting... and waiting.

Finally, an email stating first, second and third place... it wasn't me. I was crushed. It tore me open and made me want to quit. Honestly, along with other photo related problems, it was a cross-road... and I wanted off the train.

But I had no time for self-pity and loathing because busy season started with a roar and I was off again.

Fast forward to two weeks ago. I sat down at my computer and opened up an email:

"Hi Alyson,

Several of your photos were selected for display in the medical plaza.  Please send me your mailing address so a check can be issued."

My heart leapt out of my chest. I was getting another chance!! I called Trevor, screaming it out that I had been chosen!! We had to go to the open house so we could see which picture they had chosen!

One week later we were in the hospital starting our tour. We rounded the first corner. There at the end of the hallway was my photo. I turned to tell Trevor, and there on the wall beside me was another. We walked a few more feet. Another one. I told the tour guide they were my photos. She said the one at the end of the hallway was her favorite and she had been pointing it out on her tours all day. 

It became a game. Is this your photo? No. There's one! We came to the end of the tour. Samantha had kept track. Thirteen photos out of the twenty I submitted. 

300 photos in total had been submitted in the contest. I'm not sure how many were printed, but if I had to guess I'd say 30 were printed, maybe 40, but no more. 

I can't tell you what a miracle this feels like to me. I really have no words to describe the feelings I have right now. Heavenly Father loves me. I'm so grateful. I'm not a landscape photographer, but miraculously I became one for one small moment in time. I felt His love for me in that moment.