It was a Saturday morning.. Mom and I walked around our neighborhood garage sale.

There were tables everywhere filled with all sorts of things. Old books Toys.  Clothes that probably hadn't been worn in years.

I wasn't interested in any of that boring stuff...... Then I saw it.

An old silver camera sitting inside a cardboard box! 

I picked it up carefully. 

It had a small crack across the back, and the strap was very worn out. 

 I looked over at the woman across the table and immediately purchased it with the only $5 I had. 

The camera was now mine.

I was so excited to try this out!!! 

I pointed the camera at our kitchen counter table.

Click.

I looked at the picture.,,,, It looked so blurry. So I tried again.

Click.

Even worse!!! So I moved closer.

Click.

Now I had a picture of only half the table..... 

“Maybe the camera needs some practice,"  Mom laughed.

“Or maybe I do,” I said frowning. I was going to figure it out.

I watched SO many videos about photography.

I learned how to hold the camera still. I learned how to focus.

Now, I was going to take the perfect photograph! 

I practiced on everything.

The sunset.

My bicycle.

Our dog.

But every picture had something wrong with it.

Too dark. Too bright. Too blurry. Someone's hand was in the corner.

I started deleting almost EVERY picture I took.

One afternoon, I found a beautiful flower growing beside the sidewalk.

The sunlight was perfect. The background was perfect. 

“This is the perfect spot,” I whispered to myself. 

I held the camera completely still.

I focused.

I pressed the button.

Click.

"Ugh No!”

I took another picture. A car passed......

Then another. The wind blew the flower sideways.....

I stopped and stared at the screen.

I wanted to throw the camera! 

That night, I put the camera in a drawer. Maybe I wasn't  meant to be a photographer.

I had tried. I had practiced. I had watched videos.

And I still couldn't take one picture that looked the way I wanted!!!

Mom noticed the camera put away in the drawer. 

“You're not using it? Why?”

“Because I can't take good pictures.”

“Maybe you're trying too hard to take the right picture.”

“What does that mean?”

She smiled, “Maybe you should just take pictures of things you care about.”

The next afternoon, I took the camera outside.

I decided I wouldn't worry about getting the perfect picture anymore.

I took a picture of my little brother riding his scooter.

Click.

Then, I took one of Mom watering the garden. Though, the sunlight made the picture too bright.

Click.

I also took a picture of our neighbor's old blue truck. A bird ended up flying through the frame.

Click.

For once, I decided not to delete them.

They weren't the perfect pictures I had planned.

But they were real.