Reflecting on a door.
I love old buildings.
Some buildings, I’m sure, were admired from the moment they were built. Others, perhaps not until well after their builders and original occupants had long since moved on.
And not every building is admired by every person.
The same thing could be said about humans.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. – Ecclesiastes 3:11
Downtown Roanoke
This building is in downtown Roanoke, Virginia.
I have admired this building since first moving here in 2013. Perhaps it is because of the symmetry… the double arches over the windows, the black rectangular word boxes drawing the eyes upward, the green window frames along the alley side popping off of the brickwork.
It wouldn’t be until later that I would realize this building now houses Walkabout Outfitter, a store that I mentioned in this Friday Faves post.
But another reason that I came to love this building was because of a surprise door in the alleyway.
Every exit is an entrance to somewhere else. -Rebecca Puig
This door.
This door would open up a whole new world for me.
Why?
Because about three months into my blogging journey, I would stumble upon Thursday Doors. Hosted by Norm 2.0, it’s a place where door lovers come together to share wonderful doors from around the world.
Now I wouldn’t have considered myself a door lover.
Photography Challenge.
I was working on my photography skills.
And I had found various photo challenges hosted by other bloggers.
Plus one hosted by WordPress.
I found Thursday Doors intriguing because it forced me to look at details that I usually miss in the rush of everyday life.
And I was practicing living in the present. What better way than taking the time to notice one of the most important features of a building: the way inside.
The welcoming point (or perhaps, as can be the case of an alley entry, a place only known to the inhabitants).
My First Thursday Door.
This door would become my first post published and shared on Thursday Doors.
A chance encounter.
We had spent the day downtown.
I was looking for the door that I might want to showcase, but none had caught my eye.
We were heading back to the parking garage when this door caught my eye.
I snapped a few shots, did what little editing I knew how to do (if I weren’t leaving town so soon, I might have tried my hand at finding the original and re-editing), and shared the post here.
This week I was thinking about Thursday Doors because I will soon be heading off to Europe (Amsterdam and Paris) for the first time ever and I am sure to encounter amazing architecture and beautiful doors.
So I looked at my first door post.
Imagine my surprise to see that it was published one year ago, tomorrow. So much of the blogging community that I interact with has been met through Thursday Doors. I am not as active there this year because I had no archives and my recent journeys have not afforded me time to stop at many doors.
Even still, when I do not have a post to offer, I stop by and visit many people’s door posts each Thursday.
The Journey Continues.
That journey that began with that first door has changed the way that I view my everyday world.
I still notice doors as I pass.
And I wonder about the occupants.
I marvel at the intricacies.
Now, I am present.
I am living in that moment breath by breath.
Hopefully, you find the time to read the original post (it’s a very short read), but I will offer the part that left me in awe as I re-read the words that a penned one year ago.
I have not yet left this country so I have not been able to gaze upon some of the stunning overseas architecture that I have seen in pictures. I hope to someday walk among some of those streets, standing in awe, and creating my own moment in history. -Amy Lyon Smith
Tomorrow, exactly one year after I published those words, I will board a plane and leave United States soil for the first time.
Where I will walk the canal-filled streets of Amsterdam.
I will admire the tulips and walk among history.
Then I will travel to Paris and walk along the Seine.
And I will see sites that I have only witnessed on TV or in the pages of a magazine.
I will marvel at the works done at the hands of people who are long gone and in some cases long forgotten.
But that brick that they lay or that cobblestone that they placed is there… a reminder that they existed.
A small change they made in the world by showing up and doing what they were meant to do.
How will you show up today?
What difference will you make in the world?
Every choice has a ripple effect.
Even if you don’t think that you are making a difference…
You Are.
I hope that you have a lovely day. I will be pretty scarce on the blogosphere over my vacation. I’m hoping to schedule some posts. However, I have never done this (that’s right, you usually get it fresh from the presses), so we’ll see if that works. I do plan to update Instagram and hopefully post some things to my story (if you haven’t used these, just click on my IG profile pic if there’s a colored circle around it… that means that I have a story to be seen).
I hope that you have an amazing day filled with sunshine and smiles!
Let your light shine!
Amy
