"Let's go do things." (A 4 month update.)

Helen Keller once wrote, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all." She was right.

Being an "elf" at Blister Creek Falls, Oregon.

I've always been more of a "Let's go do things." rather than a "Let's talk about things." kind of person. When I was little I was the girl who would try so hard to convince every kid in the neighborhood to be part of some giant adventure. One year when it snowed, I spent the entire day leading a group of kids through the Christmas Tree field solving a "mystery" while videotaping it. Sometimes I look back and realize my habits have stayed the same: still exploring, getting my feet dirty, being the "brave" one (even if I'm hesitating as I do it), and recording the memories. 

"When someone else's happiness is your happiness, that is love."

My first job in life was as a big sister. I was born the oldest of four amazing people, whom I've had the privilege of seeing grow up. So, when my youngest sister told me she was getting married the moment was filled with both happiness, pride and a dozen mixed emotions. Then she asked me to take their pictures and of course I couldn't say no. 

“Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”

When I was little my Grandpa W.D. asked me, "What do you want to do with your life?" We were sitting in the shade of a willow tree in an almost-dead town called Dufur on a hot summer day. We camped there every summer and always chose a spot near the creek, where the branches of the tree could catch the moisture and rain relief down on our hot skin. I was young, maybe 8, so that was a big question. He always asked questions as if the question was more than it was, and I remember there was always a knowing smirk when I would respond.

My answer, "To see the world."

"Swimming" in Muncy Creek in Picture Rocks, Pennsylvania.