Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Alpinism

Our relationships with winter are as varied as our relationships with each other. Some experiences are a quick fling, a mad dash, soon to be forgotten. Others etch themselves into our psyche forever. As adults, we tend to revisit what we have loved most and if we manage to arrive there again, we find comfort in the repetition.

In thinking about these deeper connections, I realize water was the original shield that protected us from the outside world. Perhaps we all unconsciously seek this refuge again and combined with the primal need to be sheltered, create a feeling of comfort we can’t quite explain when we sit near, look at or touch the water–even in its crystal form. We can almost smell it, taste it, love being near it, write about it, take photos of it, and cast our gaze into its collective form.

These images can be profoundly universal because as viewers, we automatically relive our own winter stories by experiencing the joy of perspective. Winter can be interpreted in many ways, but it takes special skill to convey a universal feeling within an image. We all have memories like this, somewhere in our consciousness. Water is the thread that connects our adventures of winter with spring and summer. Viewing these images makes one journey wide-eyed through the constantly shifting snow. Pictured here is my son Cadence this winter at Lake Placid Olympic Village where he learned slalom skiing and our family winter home in New York.

Monday, January 27, 2020

Courage Has No Limits

You never truly realize what type of impact a person has on you until they're gone. Kobe was a giant in every sense. He served as an inspiration to people of all races and all backgrounds to be the best person they could be, on and off the court. The concurrent loss of his daughter Gianna and all the other passengers adds immensely to what is already a great tragedy. I can only imagine the pain that Kobe's wife Vanesa and all the families of those involved are going through right now, and I hope that this serves to remind us to cherish those we love while they're with us. Really shocked by the news about Kobe. Along with his kindness to people he met in LA, you could see him at the gym coaching his daughter. No pretenses, just a father with his daughter. He showed up. He was bigger than the sport, a true champion of life and giving back. #Respect