outside in nature with camera in hand is where my heart lives. It's like i need to take that in that big long breath of fresh air and breath out the memory of who I am. Have you ever had that moment, after being away from something you love for so long, returning makes you remember who you are? Not fully realizing till that moment that you haven't felt truly like yourself for a long while.

By comparison, geese migrate like they are trying out for the Olympics, but brown pelicans seem happy with the club team.

Nothing like death to get you thinking about life! About how you are living. Do I have what it takes to take the leap? I think about the SEALS in Training, Jumping out of helicopters - Where do they get the belief that they can do it? Maybe that should be my task…

It seemed like an easy enough promise to keep, except that it was January & I had gotten a little too comfortable in my warm coastal town. I wanted to stay & visit with old friends longer, but I saw the forecast. High temps in the teens is too cold for me. I wanted to be gone before that happened. So, I booked an overnight stay in West Virginia, near New River Gorge National Park. Weather said something about light snowfall, little to no accumulation, no problem, right? Yep, I believed that up until I saw the sign on I-64

Great Blue Herons are my favorite bird because of how much I see myself in them. Is it because I am tall, thin & majestic with a Zen master level of patience??? Nope, I'm none of those things. But if I could spend my days quietly alone by the water with camera in hand waiting for the exact perfect wildlife shot, I would absolutely be doing that.

My memory is like a box of postcards, bought but never addressed or sent…I think I started photography as a way to remember.

I feel like a simple person in a complex world…I want my life to be free & 100% my own. I am resilient & self-reliant. I am a survivor.