when a moment hits

I love this picture:

win mcnamee/getty images

it's from today's ny times article about the first lady's efforts to raise awareness about nutrition in school meals and fitness for kids. which, in my youth development- and healthy eating-oriented opinion, is such a refreshing topic for any first lady to take on considering the things her predecessors have put on their agendas (and droned on about)...

but social issues have nothing to do with why I love the shot.

sometimes I have a hard time connecting with art. I know, with my whole mind, that art - painting, illustration, sculpture, photography, all of it - is a very personal experience, and that others feel differently than I do about each and every piece out there. but I happen to take a very sterile, very analytical stance toward art.

maybe it's got something to do with spending four years of my life cataloging slides and their digital counterparts (really, I'm just looking for descriptive keywords); or maybe it's that I'm constantly sizing things up for the amount of time, skill, and effort (and wondering if I could do better).

I think, though, it's that I'm often just waiting for 'it' to hit, as 'it' did with the picture above.

the 'it' I'm talking about is the aforementioned personal experience, that I only know with my whole self on rare occasions, and that I only vaguely capture with words after the moment has hit. in this instance, it was a moment of recognition, a split second connection I made with this picture had something to do with the bright colors, the action, and the look on her face, that triggered the thought I've been there, I know what that feels like, that hit an undefined personal memory and caused a gut reaction. and thankfully, this gut reaction was a smile.

like I said, I don't have these moments often. so I thought I'd share, in the vain hopes that documenting such reactions might help me have more of them.