Sunday was about making connections through photography.

I met so many wonderful people at the Downtown Raleigh Home Show this weekend, but 2 interactions stand out. The first was with a woman and her elderly father who were out with their daughter/granddaughter spending so quality time together. The father had suffered a stroke some time ago and since that time, the daughter told me, he “has not been the same”. He used to do a lot of photography before the stroke and now he finds it nearly impossible. They were looking through my photos and reliving memories, some of the memories brought tears to the daughter’s eyes. They found and bought a couple of photos that clearly meant a lot to them.

It was an amazing moment and I was humbled to be there and be a small part of it.

  The second was towards the end of the day.  A young man ‘marched in’, found a photo he liked, and said “I’d like to buy that Sir”. It was a framed photo of ‘Faded Glory’ (a tattered American flag blowing in the wind). He relayed a story about this photo reminding him of a photo his sister took after a F5 tornado tore through Alabama in 2011. He then stated that he was a veteran and that the American Flag has special meaning to him. We completely understand that sentiment.

  He proceeded to tell us about his tours of duty, that took him to Korea, Germany and (after re-enlisting) finally Iraq. He described being shot in Iraq and showed us the scars of that wound. He had healed remarkably well. Later he relayed a story of his Bradly vehicle being hit by a RPG and getting hit with shrapnel and severely injured. He felt lucky to still have his limbs intact and be able to walk after some rehabilitation. To hear his story was an emotional experience.

I felt honored just to be in his presence.

TL;DR > Both of these conversations –nearly- brought tears to my eyes. THIS is why I LOVE what I do, why I LOVE photography and getting it out there to the public.

#gratitude #joyofphotography  #LeftBehind