I had the opportunity today to assist a local photographer on a bridal shoot. Just being asked felt like a huge honor, and it almost goes without saying that this was a humbling experience for me. At a time when I feel like I've been really *getting it*, photography-wise, it was really good for me to spend an afternoon in the company of somebody who trumps me a thousandfold with his skill set and experience.
On a more frivolous note, this was the first time in a long time that I had to look somewhat professional. My closet holds date dresses and cute skirts and one pair of suit slacks, but nothing comfortable enough to move around yet dressy enough to look smart. I've remedied that with a pair of black slacks. On the way to the shoot, though, I realized just how out of the working world I am, and how unprepared I am for being prepared. I'm accustomed to a world of stay-at-home parents, who are always forgiving of unwashed hair and loose schedules. I'm not used to being sharp, to doing my homework ahead of time, to making contingency plans that don't have anything to do with diapers. On my drive to part one of our shoot, I realized that as I enter this semester in which all three kids are away from me for at least three hours, five days a week, my readiness for professionalism is going to have to change.
Aside from all the obvious big business-development issues, there are the little things, the behind-the-scenes, the setting-the-stage. I need a car kit with gum, mints, floss, chapstick, change for tolls, ibuprofen, safety pins, a sewing kit, hair ties, band-aids for blisters, and such. I need to make sure I have my water bottle with me all the time. I need to get more familiar with Richmond's city streets and be able to get anywhere, any time. I need to give myself as big a buffer as possible with babysitters so that I'm never late. (I wasn't late, for the record, but I cut it close and would have preferred to be earlier.) I need to wear real shoes more often so that I don't get blisters.
I feel like a women's magazine: "6 key things never to leave behind!!!" I'm remembering my life before children, how I forgot deodorant one day and bought one on the way to work/school and kept it in my office after that so that I would never get caught without again. I was so focused on the big things about redeveloping a professional self after children that I forgot about the little things, the missing buttons and coffee spilled on sweaters. They're not the main event, but they matter.