February 8, 2021  

I’ll risk looking like a fool to say that it’s worth it when JOY is involved. Putting happiness first really leads to better decisions, interactions, and experiences. I thought you had to have certain things or conditions in life to be happy. But, everything else falls into place when you do just that.

March 5, 2021

Math was the subject that came to me easily because it’s straightforward and logical. There’s certainty when you arrive at a single answer. The answer is also guaranteed once you know which formula to apply. As a result, I thought that there are absolutes in life. The right ___. The best___. The only ___. When I chased those absolutes, I was often more confused since I wanted to hear from all sides. How else do you know anything for sure unless you’ve seen it from all angles? Having changed my mind about certain things, I know that sometimes it’s not about right or wrong, but simply a matter of preference. So, I’ve been entertaining the idea that there is nothing wrong in life. Some people say that there’s value in everything. I’ve found it to be true and it helps me get through thick and thin. Each time I do, I can’t help but think of ABSOLUTE VALUE. As in, no number can be negative since it’s measured by its distance from zero. Could it be a lesson on perspective? If we imagine our thoughts as plot points on a graph and not judge them other than notice how far they’ve strayed from the center, then it’s simpler to find common ground. Maybe the best answer is acknowledging our ability to see all the possibilities and choose the one that feels right. 

March 9, 2021

Thoughts are things. They can be as illusory and transient as clouds. We think that our beliefs can’t be moved and that they define who we are. Beliefs are simply thoughts that have been held long enough to become true. Our bodies are constantly changing, so our thoughts should evolve as well. Expanding our knowledge base, being open-minded, and stretching the imagination are all things we’re meant to do. It doesn’t take much convincing because it feels good each time we learn, discover, and create something new. Releasing thoughts that weigh us down brings us closer to that feeling, but it’s not the same as having our head in the clouds. Detaching ourselves from reality, even for a moment, allows us to see things from a different perspective and feel like a changed person. Reaching for that higher mental state can easily be attained by transforming our mood, which is essentially a feeling we’ve practiced for a while, based on a thought. The atmosphere we create has more to do with our minds than we think.

September 20, 2022  

Repetition. The word that woke me up. Today, and any day that forced me to take another look.

September 21, 2022

Sorely needed light balance, brightness, exposure, and contrast. Some cropping and filters didn’t hurt either.

June 26, 2023  

This morning, I spoke to a neighbor who just came back from Alaska. He said that it was beautiful and it looked like a postcard everywhere. Then I thanked another neighbor for her rose garden. I’ve taken so many photos and whiffs of her rose bush that it was the least I could do. Anyway, I left these encounters thinking about how I’ve come to see my neighborhood (and city) as tourists do. Never have I ever snapped pics like one. And in doing so, I’ve created my own body of “picture postcards.”

June 22, 2024

I don’t remember the photographer’s name, but she’s the only artist from the lecture series that left a lasting impression on me. After presenting her body of work, she stood against a wall and invited us to see her aura. I didn’t bother to look. Far too many people ahead of me and other things on my mind. To be honest, I probably wouldn’t have seen it anyway. I think about that day, twenty-plus years later, whenever I photograph intense light.