Do you ever sit and wonder, “What am I good at?” “What do I have to offer?” or “How can I help others?”
All of us, at some point, question ourselves about what makes us important … what makes us special … and the answers lie within ourselves. What is a gift, you may wonder, and do I have one?
Believe it or not, we all have a gift. A gift can be something you do very well and something that comes naturally to you. Most people call your talent a gift. “Such as what?” you say. Well, you could have a talent in singing, acting, riding horses, riding motorcycles, dancing, party planning, cooking, building, playing an instrument, it can be in the way you talk with people or how you listen …. The possibilities are endless.
We all have a hidden talent waiting to be explored. You are never too old or too young to discover your special gift or gifts. Once you start exploring yourself, you will realize how truly gifted you really are.
One young lady, Murphy Hunter, tells us herself that she grew up too fast. She made decisions that impacted her life tremendously. She dropped out of school and became a wife and mother of three at a young age. Murphy found herself shouldered with huge responsibilities, but used her children as her motivation.
Murphy knew by looking at her children that she had to be the one to change the cycle. She stated, “I knew I had to practice what I preached.” She states, “My children became my drive … my inspiration … my weapon to get me through every difficult obstacle.” Murphy had to make some tough decisions and had to set goals for herself and her children.
She had to let go of personal aspirations which were her gifts and focus on what was going to allow her to take care of her family. Murphy states, “I didn’t grow up with goals of college or achieving a dream job … I didn’t even know what the American dream was all about.” What Murphy did know, was that she had three small children and was a single parent. Time was of the essence and she had to set realistic goals … she had no time to waste.
Murphy enrolled in a community college and completed her GED. She, then, enrolled in college for four years to become a surgical technician and earned several certificates in the process. Murphy was determined to become a success for herself and her children.
She established a solid foundation of support from friends and family who encouraged her and assisted her during her journey. It’s very important to all of us when we are pursuing something greater, to have a solid foundation of people who will keep us motivated and who will keep us on track when times get hard.
Murphy has worked in the medical field for over 14 years and states, “It’s given me and my children a good life.” Her achievements have also served as an inspiration for her children to pursue success, regardless of the obstacles that may exist.
All of us have to keep pushing forward in achieving the goals that we set for ourselves. Don’t let obstacles stop you … find a way to push through … use your foundation of support and reach your goals. Sometimes, your hidden talents, your gifts are the means to success. You have to LOVE what you do. Otherwise, you settle for a long unsatisfactory work life. You bring in the money, but you don’t have the joy.
Murphy knew her gifts were in medicine but she also loved taking photographs. She states, “I’ve loved photography since age 12 and considered it a hobby.” In pursuing her means to provide for her family, she had focused on medicine but when she remarried, her husband encouraged her to pursue photography.
Of her husband, Murphy says, “My husband is a wonderful man who supports me and convinced me to pursue my hobby and become a professional photographer.”
She continued to work in medicine, but started to work on her profession as a photographer and her gift of taking photographs has been recognized by others.
Murphy has a gift behind the camera lens and captures the soul of those she photographs. Murphy says, “I want to represent an idea of a possibility … a possibility that I can create whatever I want to create. I can look at a person or an object and pull out what makes that person or object special. I don’t know how I do it, but when I look through my camera lens, I see nothing but possibilities. I’m an artist that uses the world as my canvas and I photograph what my eyes see.”
Murphy has shown us that while faced with obstacles in our lives, whether it’s limited education, responsibilities of being a single parent, having to face losing our job and having to start over … we can overcome those obstacles. In the process, we can explore what we are good at which often are what our special gifts are and pursue a new career that incorporates our “love” which are our gifts.
When we are pursuing and doing what we love, we find ourselves motivated to succeed. We need to live our own life… the way that we want to live it. Who knows? What you thought might just be fun or a hobby of sorts, could very well turn out to be your next career. Choose to be happy in our lives and in your work. Murphy Hunter certainly did.
Murphy stated, “If you’re not doing something that makes a difference in someone’s life … whether it be your own or someone else’s … you can feel you are wasting your time. Find out what drives you … find your inspiration … and make goals. Just do it … it’s that simple.”
Murphy Hunter’s D6Pix Productions offers all types of photography services to include weddings, bridal showers, graduations, birthdays, christenings, corporate events, proms and quinceaneras as well as personal and model sessions, both male and female. She offers contemporary, portraiture and traditional photos and can create packages in the form of albums, custom graphic design, digital files and more….
We, at CampusJobXpress, have used Murphy Hunter/D6Pix Productions on several occasions. As a matter of fact, our Novemer issue of our magazine is one of her designs. Take a look and be expecting more covers from Murphy Hunter/D6Pix Productions in the future.
Check out some of her photographs at www.facebook.com/pages/D6pix-Photography-by-Murphy-Hunter/620632147979996?ref=br_tf. She also has a Facebook magazine page at www.facebook.com/D6pixMagazine. She can be contacted at MurphyHunterD6pix@yahoo.com or call her at 512-966-8995.
By Yolanda L. Salazar & Silvia Seelig