"Can't See The Ocean Through The Sand" a Life Lesson!

Yesterday I posted some images from our trip to South Beach in Miami. The trip was a fun day to a part of Florida we had never visited. I posted about a dozen images, including this one. Truth be told I was rushing when I downloaded them, process and posted them to this blog. It was a busy day here and I wanted to include them on our site before the day was out. So I saw each image and worked on each of them to varing degrees,posted them and then later in the day I did a check of the post again ( my usual practice). I find that looking at the entry after an hour or so helps me to see the images as you might see them for the first time. I was pretty pleased with the results when I saw them and really liked one image in particular, a shot of the beach with seagulls, blue cabanas, white sand, blue ocean and someone parasailing. Well then it was supper time and then our nightly walk and I had other things on my mind but something kept pulling at me. Well around 11 PM as we were getting ready to go to bed, I went back online to look at that one image again and as I sat looking at it I realized that I really liked it, I mean really like it. I began to realize this might be one of my favorite images that I have ever taken. I went to bed and first thing this morning looked at the image once more and I honestly feel it might be one of, if not the best image I have ever taken.
This started me thinking about how we sometimes are to busy to see what we really appreciate in life. There is a saying about not seeing the forest through the trees and I think we do that much to often in our busy lifes. How much are we missing, as photographers how many images are we missing. Have you ever driven by a scene at the end of a 10 hour day of shooting and thought it looked interesting but kept driving because: A) It was dinner time, B) your tired, C) you convince yourself that you will get it tomorrow, which of course you won't because the light will not be the same, D) traffic is heavy and you will need to turn back, E) insert your excuse.
It does not matter what you think about this image, although I would love to know, it matters that I love it and almost didn't really see it. I was in a rush, busy as always and half a dozen things were on my mind. I don't make new year resolutions but maybe this year I will. SLOW DOWN, enjoy my life to its fullest and see, I mean really see, all there is to see.
Are you missing out on your life, not really enjoying your family & friends? Are you not seeing your kids as they grow into adults, not seeing what is happening to the planet around you?
Are you truly seeing how lucky you are to live in this country, to be with your partner in life, hell just to be alive? Slow down, see the forest, smell the roses, see the ocean and pull on the cape of your creativity. It will make you a better photographer and person!!!