“Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere and sometimes in the middle of nowhere you find yourself.” ~Stacy Westfall

2022 was a beautiful year for me. It has taught me resilience, spirituality, gratitude, hope and faith in humanity. It encouraged me to slow down while pursuing life’s passions and accept projects that align with my interests and advocacy.

In celebrating my birthday every 10th day after New Year, January is a special month in my life. It always reminds me to reflect upon my unbelievable journey so far with gratitude and so much appreciation.

In self-reflection over those harrowing two years of pandemic and watching people and friends go through mental health struggles as well as coping with the new normal, I have taught myself to unlearn habits that were hard to break — that unplugging regularly is a wise thing to do and it is okay to reset and meditate before making decisions. That it is okay to spend time alone, and not just for Me time, but with family and loved ones.

That it is best to keep in touch with nature constantly (I like to shoot barefoot in the woods, by the way — even long before the word “grounding” became a familiar term). And it is great to wake up filled with gratitude and counting blessings before going to bed.

So may this year bring beautiful blessings to those who persevere, good health to those who are weakened, hope to those who are losing faith, and love to those who keep believing.

Thank you for being with me on this wonderful journey through the years. May 2023 give us bountiful prosperity, abundance, joy, kindness, compassion and empathy for others. May we always be grateful for the little miracles left unnoticed everyday.

I share with you a few of my photos “in the middle of nowhere”. These are locations of the tribal communities that we have been documenting for a project on coffee table books. You will find me posting and sharing more stories soon, and hope that you will find inspiration in one of them.

The adventures continue.