Peruvian Ingenuousness

My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

Peru | Thursday, November 3, 2011 | 5 photos

Throughout my life, I have had my share of adventure and opportunity and for that I am truly grateful. I grew up in a typical suburban American home at a time when families sat down and had dinner together, watched evening television together and talked about what events took place that day. Although the world was somewhat confined to our circles of community, kids were aware of something bigger and better. We were keenly aware of opportunity for adventure as we intently watched Marlin Perkins wrestle an Anaconda in Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom or as we pawed through a National Geographic Magazine getting our first look at Mars.

Today, people have become more closed, more isolated and less interested in the world around them. We have created barriers such as iPods, the Internet and even bigger homes containing fewer people. People are just missing so much as the world passes them by like the blurred scenery of their hurried morning commutes.

I was the inquisitive child. Even today, I find myself taking time to enjoy and appreciate the beauty of life. I want to be the kind of photographer that can make people stop, look and perhaps even value their surroundings because that is what life is all about. An opportunity to be mentored by Jason Edwards would not only give me technical insight on how to accomplish my goals as a photographer, it would also allow me to see how another artist perceives the world. If you don’t take the time, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain