Sometimes you make choices that are hard to explain to those close to you. In 2005 when I decided to pick up and move 1,745 miles from my family and the home where I had grown up it was hard to explain. It was harder still to explain that I was going to a town in Colorado that I’d never before seen in person. And even harder still to explain was why I felt so confident that doing so with my boyfriend of 3 months at the time (whom my family had not yet met) made perfect sense. I’m not the kind of person who puts barriers between myself and my family. I’ve always been close to them despite my adventurous streak. Seldom were my actions this surprising or extreme.
I’ve been happy ever since I moved to Colorado. I’ve had opportunities that I never dreamed, creating successes for Drew and I that we never could have experienced in Boston. But, today I had a moment of clarity.
Drew tells me that I’m far too hard on myself when it comes to my photographs. And he has once pointed out that my ability to worry about my work exceeds the level of necessary concern that one should harbor regarding their trade. He is right. I worry. I worry a lot, because I want to please people and I want to be as proud of my work as possible.
But I try very hard not to worry when I’m with clients, friends, models or anyone that is on the opposite side of my camera. I want those people to be at ease and enjoy our time together.
It turns out they do. I’ve had the pleasure of receiving some really beautiful compliments over the past couple weeks regarding my work. I’m so thankful for the people who have given me their time and trust to create remarkable moments.
I credit Colorado with giving me the strength of experience to realize my dreams. I credit the people I’ve met here in Colorado who have made an incredible difference in my life. In 2 short years I’ve changed my day job numerous times, constantly making connections with people who have opened their arms wide in support. I’ve grown my seedling of a photography career into a fledgling business that will one day carry my mixed metaphor forward to something massive.
Until then I’ll meet people that continue to lead the way to more opportunities and more personal growth. But there is one person that caused me to write this. I met her a few months back through a coworker at Key. A wedding was coming up and they asked me to document their rehearsal dinner. It was a wonderful event where I had the pleasure of meeting two very different families and watching them meld into one unique and powerful force.
I watched as people met for the first time, exchanging initial pleasantries and eventually laughing and smiling joyfully from deep within. I heard wonderful speeches and toasts about the nature of friends as family and the couple that brought them all together. And then I learned about a powerful expression that one family had shared with many people in that group. I had actually seen and noted it while taking photographs earlier in the evening. It’s a trademark hug that is apparently so powerful and so meaningful that you have to experience it to truly understand. The nice thing about these hugs, is that the family who distributes them is almost always willing to envelope you and welcome you as one of their own. From observation I have to say that the power of the hug is in the total time that the embrace lasts. Far longer in duration than more casual hug greetings, this is the hug most people save for someone they haven’t seen in a very long time. It is the hug of someone who truly cares about you.
I learned a few things that night about both myself and the nature of relationships. But most importantly in this crazy world of fast paced living: there are really wonderful warm people who care. They genuinely care and these people will find the moments in the hustle and bustle to reach out to you. Take their hand and give them your ear, because we all need a moment to experience real human warmth now and again.
Thank you Nancy.
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