Max is photogenic, and he knows it. Maybe a little to photogenic. So many of the pictures I take are intentionally of him (that is one of the reasons I started this blog – to give purpose to the hundreds of photos on my phone). But I have found that occasionally Max makes it into some photos that are not intentionally of him.
Max has mastered the art of the photobomb.
Perhaps it is because Max just has to be in the middle of the action of whatever is going on, but there are many times he suddenly appears in a photo that he was not meant to be in.
He is so good, he can even do it in his sleep (ok that one may have been intentional).
I was trying to discern what overall lesson Max’s photobombing could provide, but I really could not tie anything together. And perhaps that is just the nature of this wild action of sporadically jumping into what has been carefully framed. Perhaps, through photobombing, Max can only teach me short, spontaneous quips that purposefully do not fit into the larger scope, but on their own provide a whole new aura of meaning in life.
Anyway, here are Max’s lessons, in true photobomb form:
He teaches me that there is a lot going on outside the frame of my vision, outside the parameters of my life. It is both worth being more aware of that, and doing my best to widen my scope and take in more than my own narrow field of vision.
Max teaches me that bringing the things on the edges into the center can be a little unsettling, but overall it is so worth it. Making room for whatever is on the edge of life leads to surprising renewal and more depth of experience.
He reminds me that the world is chaotic and wild, and more often than not we just need to embrace that.
As someone who is more than happy to be outside the frame of action, Max teaches me that sometimes I do need to step right in the center, even if it is uncomfortable.
At the same time, Max teaches me how disruptive it can be to jump in the center of things when I am not invited to do so. Sometimes, I do need to stay on the sidelines.
And he teaches me that there is infectious joy that can disrupt the overly serious or overly mundane elements of life. Max teaches me to embrace that joy and allow it to add some (unexpected) color into my life.
Whether appreciated or not, photobombing disrupts. But Max has at least taught me that I can move in and out of whatever frames are around me in a way that brings depth and joy and expands my own understand and appreciation of this wild world.
So, thank you Max for photobombing me. Thank you for jumping into things in a way that disrupts for the best and widens how I see the world.
Lessons From Max 