Ending The Radio Silence

I’ve been the worst blogger. It’s been a whole year (actually a little over, but who’s counting?) of radio silence on my end. Not on purpose, mind you, at least not intentionally. At first it was just crazy busy life that got in the way. Before I knew it I had 52 posts and counting in my backlog “to do” list and a year had gone by.

I’ve been sharing my life online for nearly a decade, but somewhere in the last year I was caught up in mixed feelings about it. Do I share mostly “work things” now that my career is photography full time? But I spent most of this blog’s life writing about my daily life, so I don’t want to lose that freedom! Will people feel weird about seeing my personal life on my “portfolio”? Won’t people get bored of only seeing my work? It was this constant tug-of-war between what I wanted to do, what I felt I should do, what “other professionals were doing” (when will we creatives ever learn, am I right?), etc. It weighed on me. You can imagine the self imposed pressure I was under to make a decision and take charge. I just never did. And that pressure grew. Suddenly sharing my life or work or whatever -because I couldn’t get my poop in a scoop and decide- didn’t seem so fun anymore. It was draining, it was depressing looking at how long it had been since I last wrote. How should I start? (All my saved drafts started with an apology.)

Then I went to Hawaii and everything changed. It was a life altering experience for me and I am forever changed. But I don’t want to get ahead of myself, we’ll get to Hawaii later. (I promise.) For now, let’s try to start where we left off…

Starting last January, for my 30th birthday, I gave myself a one word focus. Instead of a laundry list of resolutions and goals I might never complete and then inevitably carry around like suitcases full of guilt, I chose one word. One drive. 2016’s focus was balance.

What a joke! The moment I had written the word down, my entire year blew up and challenged my every sense of balance. My work life balance, career balance (more on that later), my time management balance, even my closet; the list really goes on. It was a crazy year for me, but in the end I’m satisfied with what I learned and how I grew. Though I’ve taken on a new word this year, I will still strive to grow and work on balance in my life. One never really does stop learning and growing.

So I want to share at least one entry a week with you for the next year, whether it’s work or play, and I am excited! I am thrilled to be here once again, and boy I have so much I want to share. So whether you’re an old friend or new one, I’m so happy that you came (back).

These photos are from last January when I went to go see my dad in Alaska for the second time. Alaska is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been, but more on that later too (because I still haven’t shared photos from that adventure).