I had the opportunity to see former President Barack Obama speak this week and, as expected, he is as thoughtful and classy in person as we’ve long known him to be in print and on tv. He spoke articulately about a variety of topics, but there were three things that especially stood out for me.

1. When asked, and I’m paraphrasing, what mantra he has used in raising his daughters…the foundation on which he based all else…it was: “Be kind. And be useful.”

2. When asked what trait he’s most grateful for having inherited from his mother, he said, ‘empathy.’

3. And, when asked about a famous photograph of a young boy touching the President’s hair in the oval office and why he believed it had the resonance it did…he spoke of the significance of a young African American boy experiencing proof that they - he and POTUS - were alike, when in the all-too-recent past this was an impossibility.

In a time that seems hell-bent on judging the person by the number of followers, equating busy with successful, admiring those who have instead of those who quietly do…President Obama reminds us what is most important in this one precious life:

• kindness

• using your gifts and talents, whatever they may be, to better the world

• empathy

• that we are all more alike than we are different

• and, the audacity of hope, for that is what propels us toward a more loving, peaceful, and just world.

I endeavour to move through life with these tenets, and here are some of the ways…

• I still have openings if you’d like to nominate a deserving woman for a portrait session (you can read more about this opportunity in my NYE blog post). My heartfelt thanks to those who have nominated loved ones…I am so looking forward to meeting these amazing women!

• I’d love to work with women who wish to incorporate photography as a means of therapy* or distraction during a difficult time in her life, whether it’s learning to use a DSLR, using editing apps on her phone, or creating a photographic record of her journey. I offer rates on a sliding scale to ensure this offering is available to anyone interested.

• To continue offering portrait sessions that are founded in connection, empathy, authenticity, empowerment, and fun. Every woman deserves a portrait she loves…and her loved ones deserve it too!

*Note that I am not a certified art therapist; rather, someone who is passionate about photography, who would love to share what I know, and who believes in the healing power of art in all its forms.

The truth is that we needn’t be on the world stage to make a difference…change is made by the mom who encourages acceptance in her children, by the mailman who speaks quietly to the dog, by the teacher who notices when a student’s demeanour has changed and reaches out, by each person believing that they have a unique gift for the world…the truth is that little ripples make big waves.

Wishing each of us the courage to own our unique gifts, to offer them to the world with integrity and goodwill, and to believe that these seemingly small choices are in fact the flap of a butterfly’s wings.

With gratitude,

Lori