Margaret Matijasevic finds God behind her camera lens. Throughout her day, the 31-year-old zooms in on what captures her attention: her children, a bird taking flight, a cup of coffee—ordinary things, she says, “not just Ansel Adams nature photography.”

1. My Vocation
I’ve looked at this picture at various stages of my
life and have always come to a deeper
understanding of its meaning. I originally took this
photo late in college when I shifted majors from
biology to theology. I remember how I struggled
to live out my vocation of being called to the
church ministry. As I grappled with my future, I
was invited into this moment of pause.
My baby photograph wedged into the mirror of
my parents’ bedroom filled me with peace that
day, as I recognized that my relationship with
Christ is a lifelong experience. Now, when I find
myself at a crossroads, this is the photograph I
turn to. For me, this photograph is hope. And a
reminder that there is more to the story to come,
as the Paschal Mystery continues to unfold again
and again.

2. Injustice:
Borders Within Our Hearts
I remember my first encounter with injustice during an
immersion trip to Tijuana, Mexico, during my senior year in
college. For the 10 days I was there, I saw everything that
scared me about this world—from prisons and orphanages
to convalescent homes and the Mexican/American border.
On the trip, I was able to name that deeply-rooted fear: the
stripping of human dignity. This photograph is of the
Mexican/American border that extends into the Pacific
Ocean. It was there I met a man in the middle of the night,
as he was just arriving at the shoreline after swimming for
miles underwater so he could deliver money to his family.
After hearing his story, the world became bigger than the
one I knew. I got know myself in a deeper way that day, and I
began wrestling with the reality that the decisions I make in
this world affect more people than just me. I keep this
picture hanging in my home, as a reminder that borders can
create numbness toward the stripping of human dignity, and
as an awareness of human compassion.

3. Our Flirtatious God
The grandeur of God’s intimacy can be
discovered in nature. If one looks around and
pays attention, one realizes how madly in love
with us God is. The attention to detail, the
uniqueness of every aspect of creation—it all
leads one to enter into a love affair with God.
And throughout any day, we are invited into this
love affair over and over again: with birds
chirping and dancing in the wind; with flowers
blooming; with rays of light breaking through
shadowy moments. Our God sends us little
reminders every day of His love through nature’s
beauty. God is really a wonderful flirt, luring us
into a deeper relationship with Him.

4. The Extraordinary Reflection of
Ordinariness
I fall in love with God over and over again
through my children. Vincenzo and Elizabetta
invite me to unwrap the simplest of God’s gifts.
In this picture, ordinary pavement, filled with
tire marks and cracks, became a playground of
wonder for my kids on this unusually moist day
in Los Angeles. The two of them frolicked in
puddles, chased each other, pausing, and then
raising their hands in glee.
I couldn’t help but notice life’s fullness on an
otherwise ordinary day. And I have since
understood that this is the invitation God
extends to us constantly, that within the
ordinary is something extraordinary—and it’s
ours to know.
I keep this image on my desktop at work to
remind myself that there is always another way
to look at what’s being presented.

5. Our Human Story
What I have found really neat is exploring the
photographs my children have taken. Their photos
show me their perspective on life.
The first photo is of me driving my children through
LA traffic from the view of my six-year-old son
Vincenzo’s car seat. I’m struck by the way he
captured my eyes in the rear view mirror, the
emotion of waiting, and the experience of being a
mom to a child, modeling how to drive through the
traffic of life.
The second is a self-portrait of my two-year-old
daughter Elizabetta. I am intrigued by the framing,
the color, the lighting, and the overall invitation to
know what she’s thinking in that moment.
All images invite us into a story, but to recognize your
own sacred story and its connection to others
through photography has been a wonderful
experience of grace in my life. I am blessed to be
invited into my children’s experience through their
photographs.