In The Aftermath

My finger tips hover over the keyboard momentarily while my eyes shift focus.

From my hands to hers and back again.

I trace every line, every wrinkle. Her story etched into her skin.

It’s sometimes hard for me to reconcile with the world

And its flagrant disregard for order.

Choosing simply to devolve into a chaotic system.

Where one choice offers an infinite amount of possibilities.

And each person is subject to the choices of others.

Left to fend for themselves in the aftermath.

The only comfort I take out of the chaos,

Is knowing that everybody is most likely confused

About what actually constitutes happiness.

Born Into Chaos

If eyes are a window to the soul, what would we see?

Would we see wealth or oppression?

Would we see a life used as the foundation for other’s success?

Or would we see a reflection of who we are?

A child, born into chaos, floating through the ether.

We breathe the same air, and walk the same soil.

We wake up to the same sun, and stare in awe at the same starry night.

We all feel love, comfort, sadness, hope;

The chill of winter, and the warmth of spring.

But over time, we learn about hatred, intolerance.

We are taught to unravel the common threads that bind us together.

One-by-one, we cast off those who are different.

We cut the perceived blights from our collective family tree.

Burying them with our own ignorance.

And for what?

Awe and Inspiration

Looking back through old photos is always interesting for me because as time passes, my tastes change, and things that I felt were whatever, have now taken on a different meaning. While looking through some old 35mm scans from a trip I took back in 2004, I found this one. It’s a fairly simple photo of Swayambhunath Stupa in Bhaktapur, Nepal. There is nothing crazy going on, no incredible human feat, aside from the creation of both buildings, but It brings back great memories of my first traveling experience. I look at it and feel the same sense of awe and inspiration that I felt at that moment, and I think maybe that’s what photography is about sometimes.

Wading Through the Sea

Back in 2004, I spent about three months teaching english at a school in Bhaktapur, Nepal. I was 20 and it was my first time traveling outside the U.S. I grew up in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and while I consider it to be a really beautiful area, it isn’t necessarily the epicenter of culture. Because of this, my first experience abroad was quite overwhelming. As I walked down the steps of the plane at Kathmandu International Airport, I was overcome by humidity and was instantly covered in sweat. I nervously followed people that looked like they knew what they were doing and figured out my way through customs. For someone that had done absolutely no research about traveling, I felt pretty good about it.

Apart from being my first time abroad, this was also the first time that I had thought about photography as more than just a hobby. After wading through the sea of taxi drivers, I walked around the city with my camera, marveling at every narrow alley, every temple. Watching people come and go with a sense of wonder. Looking back, it seems kind of ridiculous, but I also realize that’s the reason why I love photography. Being able to capture a moment that is very personal to you, and then having the opportunity to show other people, attempting to evoke the same emotions that you felt when you initially took the photograph. To me, this is why photography exists.