You are so much more

My dear reader,

Have you ever tried to take a photo of something and failed to grasp the beauty you were attempting to capture? I have. Normally, it’s something that is so breathtaking due to its size, shape or splendor that I just have to try to capture it. By taking the picture I show my desire to want to hold on to that memory forever.

I’m famous for trying to capture gorgeous sunsets, historic buildings, and extremely tall trees. I’ve made my husband pull the car over just so I can do my best to take a picture of a sunset and cornfield.

While in California, I saw the most gorgeous full moon I have ever seen. And so, of course, I took a picture. Or I like to say I tried. I tried to capture its magnificence all in a single tap of my iPhone 6 screen. To the left is the best photo I took (or maybe my husband did?).

I am lucky the moon turned out so round in the photo, so you don’t think I’m completely crazy for calling it the moon and not some random street light. You can sort of see the mountain on which it hung over but you can’t see it fully. You can’t appreciate how bright it was that night. Nor do you get the feeling of how massive it was in the sky and how small I felt standing under it. The photo itself can only give you an idea of its beauty, wonder, perfection and light but it can’t show you everything.

A few months ago my husband got to play with this fancy thousand dollar zoom lens on his Canon t5i. It just so happened we were at a football game when the partial moon appeared from under its cloudy blanket. My husband, like me, snapped a few photos and I am proud to say he got an even bigger glimpse of the moon’s majesty:

But it’s still incomplete. It still doesn’t show you everything. It’s a whole lot closer than my simple iPhone camera shot, as you can see a lot more details, but it’s still not a full representation of all that the moon truly is.

On Earth, we will never be able to take a picture that fully represents everything the moon is.

Photo credit: NASA.gov

Even photos from NASA (like the one to the right) are still missing major components including that of its true size and grander. Photos don’t show the moon’s awe-inspiring quality to make even the man with the biggest crown on or biggest office at his command, to fall down on his knees and wonder if there is something more than this life.

What makes us think we are any different?

What makes us think that our selfies we plaster the internet with are any different? What makes us think our mirrors are equal representations of who we are as a person, showing both our depths and our short-sighted appearances?

Just like a photo of the moon, a photo of you, a reflection of you, a verbal or written description of you is not all of who you are. Nor is it all someone else.

Just like taking a photo of the moon doesn’t show off its complete charm, light, and elegance, our feeble descriptions of who we are as humans are equally as flawed. Equally as pathetic when compared to the real thing.

We are so much more than a reflection or a photograph. Let us stop giving things or people permission to be the creator of our definition.

We are so much more.