Her shoes... PART 2: 'how does it feel'

As I wrote in Part 1, many have contributed to my ‘experiment in empathy’…some participated merely in that our paths crossed and this topic was a part of their story; others generously shared their first-hand accounts when I asked, in preparation for writing this; and still others were gracious cheerleaders who offered questions about the experience so that I might better articulate my myriad thoughts on what has been a really varied ride.

I’ve procrastinated* writing this series as it has felt daunting —> I’m certain I’ll leave out aspects that deserve attention & conversation, or not do justice to the brave & articulate women who’ve inspired me, and all of that worries me… alas, all I can do is try and if it moves the needle - even just a little - with regard to this topic then I will feel good.

(*note that I began this draft in May …what follows is from the file of: imperfect action is better than perfect inaction!)

in her shoes: one woman told me that she’d always felt her long blonde hair was her trademark…growing up she’d been lauded by many about how beautiful her hair was and, unsurprisingly, that compliment - on just her hair - became subconsciously equated to her beauty overall, both for her and those around her… sadly, she discovered, it had also seeped into her self-perceived worth. When she was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive type of cancer she - if only briefly - pondered not doing chemo as the thought of losing this ‘piece of myself’, ON TOP of having to deal with the diagnosis, seemed too much to bear.

in my shoes: shortly after shaving my head we - my husband, two kids, and me - ran into an acquaintance. Not one to ever mince words, this older man, was quick to display his ‘displeasure’ at my appearance, followed by incredulity when he asked, ‘why would you do that?’. I had half expected that I might get a reaction like this, at some point from someone, and so I’d braced myself and was able to 1) take a breath and 2) explain why. He laughed, rolled his eyes, and added, ‘I hope you raised some money at least!’ and then turned to my husband, scoffed, and offered something akin to ‘sucks to be you.’ (shout out to our kids who, after we were alone again, wanted to know if I was okay and then reassured me with their disgust anyone would be so offensive.)

in her shoes: one woman wrote about how grateful she is now, after losing her hair to Cancer treatments, when she catches a glimpse of her unwashed hair in a reflection or when the wind blows and her long hair gets stuck in her lipgloss…what had once felt a nuisance now results in joy…. #perspective

in my shoes: in late Spring, when we were pretty much locked down in Alberta due to the pandemic and my head newly shaved, I would sometimes need to get groceries (before I discovered instacart!). It was interesting experiencing how differently people behaved around me as a bald woman vs how they had beforehand. Prior to shaving my head I noted that most would try to follow the pandemic-era aisle arrows and maintain distance from others but, inevitably, there were always instances of people who would forget (or those who didn’t care) and would get nice and close 😬. However, with my new baldness I noticed that people were incredibly careful around me - presumably because they assumed my health was compromised. It was such a weird feeling: simultaneously feeling like I should tell them not to worry as I was healthy and not immuno compromised, while also being quite content with them keeping their distance! This is one of the more interesting aspects of the experience, and I admit to not knowing how I feel about it. On one hand: we’re human and we’re bound to make assessments based on appearance - even well-meaning ones; on the other hand, how many times have we judged the book by the cover and been wholly wrong. If I had been unwell, I think I’d have been really grateful to everyone who respected my space during a pandemic to ensure they didn’t make me sicker, and I’d also likely have been really upset with those who didn’t. It’s a slippery slope between being conscientious & polite and making unfounded/potentially wrong assumptions.

in her shoes: Mom, NEVER wanted to be the centre of attention, tried hard to avoid being in social situations post-hair loss and during her treatments. She was hyper sensitive to the stares, the pity, the looks of sadness on others’ faces - of people known to her and of strangers. While she was appreciative when people were helpful to her - holding the door so we could push the wheelchair through more easily, etc - she was also resentful…not of their kindness, but of never feeling like she could escape being treated as a patient. She wanted her ‘fly under the radar’ independence back, but her appearance always ensured that impossible.

in my shoes: last Spring a loved one suffered a stroke and had to be hospitalized. One day, while visiting, I was waiting at the nurses’ desk to ask something when another woman arrived, seemingly needing to ask something too. I acknowledged her with a smile as we waited and, without nearly any hesitation in time, she asked if I was undergoing Cancer treatment (our city’s Cancer Centre is housed in the same building and so, while forward, it didn’t seem without context to me). I said ‘no’ and explained that I often work with women who lose their hair to treatment and so it was an exercise in empathy. She immediately said, ‘oh, that’s great! Did you raise a lot of money?’ Again, I replied ‘no’, that it was a personal initiative and I’d been disinclined to run a fundraiser during a pandemic. Her face told the story: disappointment. She wasn’t done there though….as she was apparently unsatisfied with my answers thus far, she went on, ‘well, did you at least donate your hair? That’s what my daughter did and I’m so proud of her!’ I answered that I hadn’t’, and she looked so disgusted with me that I quickly felt on the defensive and needed to justify, explaining that I ‘couldn’t donate my hair as it was both too short AND colour treated, but my kids had raised money and donated their hair…..’ The back and forth left me feeling defensive and irritated: WHY did I feel I had to explain myself to this stranger? And WHY did she think it was any of her business anyway?

in her shoes: “Today I let go of my hair and my attachment to it as an image of my ego. I let go of the illusion that it represents who I am. I let go of how I have defined myself for the last 60 years – by accomplishment, external validation and doing.”

in my shoes: when I was 9 months pregnant with our first born we attended a baseball game in San Francisco. As we moved through the turnstile, the ticket-checker moved to stand right in front of me. I was taken aback but then looked at him and saw his huge smile as he placed both of his hands on my belly and said, ‘ I have a gift, I’ve never been wrong…this will be a boy!’ This was something - although usually far less dramatic - that had happened often throughout my last trimester…people feeling like they could touch me or comment on my size or ask questions (questions that only my husband or doctor or closest friend should have been comfortable asking 😳), without consent nor encouragement. It didn't usually offend or irritate me BUT I was aware of it as I had many friends who found it abhorrent behaviour (which, if we’re being honest, it is….no one should ever be touched without their consent). I bring this up as there are many similarities between that experience and the experience of having a shaved head…it is really interesting how many people abandon accepted societal boundaries they’d normally adhere to in these two scenarios. Where is the line between being caring/conscientious and being presumptive/invasive? And why is it left to the person being manhandled to justify why it makes them uncomfortable. I must say again: it’s a slippery slope…that man in San Fran had only goodwill and I easily sensed it BUT that doesn’t make it okay. In conveying this parallel to a friend she asked if anyone had ever touched my shaved head without my prior consent… that never happened to me BUT I was shocked that a number of people not close to me asked if they could.

Q&A - with my thanks to those who asked when I was trying to gather my thoughts:

·      how did you feel in being ‘exposed’ in the wider world? NAKED. it was likely the most liberating thing I’ve ever done (I’ve done things that made me feely truly free before but they were short-lived), but I also felt super conspicuous and vulnerable. It was fascinating to me that posting the self portraits I’d made post-shave felt harder than posting boudoir and bikini shots of myself.

·      did you feel that your hair offered a disguise or camouflage to your vulnerability? 100%. It’s a security blanket, a means of fitting-in, and hair is something that the whole world has an opinion about.

·      did you find yourself explaining or compensating to others? Constantly. Sometimes in a really beautiful way but other times (as above) from a defensive, judged stance. I really believe in the power of shared experience and stories, and so I have been keen to share (as evidenced by this blog), BUT being made to feel like I NEEDED to explain myself to strangers wasn’t cool. It’s also not lost on me that I used selfie filters more this year than I ever have before…as evidenced in this shot from summer 2020. Don’t get me wrong - I love playing with filters for fun, but I really feel like I ‘leaned on them’ more this year than I wish I had. 😔 (PS the ‘no hair’ is one thing, but combined with illness and my ‘quarantine-15’ I really did not feel my best…can you relate?)

·      with the lockdown were you able to get out in public to observe reactions of people you don’t know? When I’d initially planned to shave my head - preCovid - I thought I’d keep it for a few months; however, because I was out a lot less due to the pandemic, I chose to keep it shaved for five months. This longer period ensured I could have a more robust experience. I started letting it grow in October.

·      is your hair growing back? It is 😊 I’ve been keeping the ‘ears down’ portion short with an electric razor while the top grows out…I expect to be able to pop it in a short pony by Christmas! I should say that I’ll miss having really short hair - it was easy, cute (at least I thought it was 😉), and I felt a little badass with it! 😎 Who knows: maybe I’ll do it again!

 ·      ‘best’ and ‘worst’ experiences: from family, friends, strangers? the best experience was how wholeheartedly supportive my ‘people’ were, 🥰 As I wrote in Part 1, I’ve often said - to my mom, to my kids, to my friends, ‘it’s only hair,’ BUT that isn’t how society has trained us to think or feel - so it’s especially poignant when it’s our own hair: how does my hair define me? How do I worry I’ll be perceived if I change or lose it? I think the worst experiences were when people were openly critical and/or judgmental without any context or invitation…this was hard because of how depressing it is that society places such import on women’s appearance, and was made only tougher, truthfully, because I cared. 😔

·      do you regret your decision to ‘lose’ your hair? NOOOOO! 💪 I have LOVED this experience…it’s been all I hoped it would be: enlightening, hard, beautiful, emboldening, liberating, empowering, easy (I’ve never showered so fast in my life!), challenging, and an adventure. I can’t know what it feels like to lose my hair BUT I can now say I know how it feels to walk out into our all too often judgemental world feeling naked and conspicuous, and THAT can surely only add to my empathy for others who don’t have a choice (which, in reality, is most of us: hair loss, hair texture, hair length, etc).

It’s such a vast subject…

patriarchy, women being expected to play their role in meeting society’s definition of ‘beauty’, women’s autonomy to choose her own aesthetic without the pressure (or care) of what ‘the neighbours will say’…

but I hope this - at minimum - gives each of us pause for how we might be contributing to a society wherein a woman subconsciously equates her worth with her appearance. I know I have work to do and I’d venture to say you might too… ❤️

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this…always room for respectful discussion.

xo Lori

Passion, Purpose & Beauty in Diversity

Yesterday would have been Mom’s 76th birthday...she’s been gone now for almost 24 years. She was strong, loyal, smart, stubborn, kind, and so very generous.

Not a day goes by that I don’t wish she was here to celebrate life’s blessings and to console me during the tougher times. Not a day goes by that I don’t wish my kids could have her earthly unconditional love and vice versa.

There are so many ways that my mom, her battle with Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer, and her loss have impacted me...the most outwardly noteworthy being my chosen career path.

Despite a lifelong interest in photography, I was still too young and inexperienced to have known how to produce a professional portrait of Mom before she died. I so wish I could go back in time – to have been able to photograph her in a way that would have allowed her to see her beauty the way we all did.

With that devastating experience, a seed was quietly planted… it would take years for me to understand that that seed would become my purpose; and it would take even longer for me to make the conscious decision to tend to it.

My journey has had defining moments and one came 10+ years ago. A woman, Jeanette, had been referred to me by another client; she was participating in a fitness competition and wanted to capture her hard work between judging sessions. It was my first time working with a lone woman in front of my lens (outside of some headshot work I’d done) and became a pivotal experience for me —> realizing the joy I gleaned from helping this woman CELEBRATE her life, her strength, her hard work & dedication, her journey. The power in the room that day was palpable: the camaraderie, the trust, the laughs, the focus on HER, the collaboration…it was profound. I’ll be ever grateful to JB for her trust that day, for helping me hone in on my life’s mission, and for the years of friendship & working together since.

Today, I feel as though I am at another juncture…

I’ve long let my business flow organically - always thrilled to work with every woman (man or family too) seeking portraiture; however, in the recent few years, I’ve begun to understand that I could - and should - be doing more. I want for little girls all over the world to see women that ‘look like them’, doing the things they want to do…I recently saw a young woman, who was born in India, speak of what it meant for her to see another Indian woman become an astronaut and how that visual allowed her to think ‘I CAN DO THAT TOO!’ For far too long the mainstream media and products have showcased: attractive, affluent, and white, as though that is what ALL women ‘should’ look and be like —> a disservice & loss to our entire society, and a travesty for those who have been so egregiously excluded for no reason at all. (don’t even get me started on how women in general continue to fight for equality 😡…a blog for a different day.)

What if - by actively seeking to diversify my portfolio - I might be able to help more consciously inspire others: be it a woman who sadly feels unworthy to exist in print (we are our very own worst critics😔) or a little girl who is looking for a role model of what is possible 💪🏾? I want for girls & women to look at my portfolio and see themselves - beautiful, strong, resilient, aged young to wise, accomplished, unique, kind, all body shapes and sizes, quiet or loud, loving whomever they choose, from all walks of life, and living their life’s purpose - from homemaker to astronaut to seamstress to doctor to detective to <xyz>. What if, in my own small way, I can help move the needle forward on how girls & womxn view themselves?

“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

~ Theodore Roosevelt

Last week I had the extraordinary privilege of spending the evening with this beauty, who’d been nominated for the session by a client and mutual friend/colleague, as part of my conscious effort to diversify my portfolio ((thx, GA❤️). 'Sunny is an accomplished woman - mom, wife, officer, and ‘sunshine spreader’ 😉 ; a proud Indigenous woman; and someone who - trust me - will wow you with what is possible… blog entry about this effervescent soul coming soon!

While there is no going back to the days when, in a perfect world, Mom is still here and I have the knowledge & skills to create a worthy portrait of her...I will pursue my passion & purpose by endeavouring to provide empowering portraiture to the women who are here today. Mom’s loss has been a defining life circumstance for me and I can only hope I’m using the experience as proactively as possible, in a way that honours her memory by honouring the women in my midst.

Ladies: whether you’re celebrating a milestone, picking up the pieces after divorce, or confronting a diagnosis —>

portraiture is so much more than ‘a picture.’ It can – and should - be an experience that leaves you feeling buoyed and beautiful, worthy and strong, while also holding up a ‘mirror’ so that you might see the inherent beauty your loved ones see in you.

Never be afraid to celebrate TODAY…we can’t ever know what tomorrow holds, all we can do is make the very best use of this moment.

With gratitude & humility,

Lori

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Gifting Experience + An Offer

This past year has left most of us on our heels… the common theme of resonance has been that we simply don’t know what tomorrow holds and the onus is on each of us to slow down, to appreciate the little things in life, and to celebrate each day we have.

This holiday season, give her the gift of portraiture:
an empowering experience, designed for her, that culminates in
images that shine back her inherent beauty for all to see.

Through December 24th I am offering a $100 print credit with every portrait session purchased!
You can safely & easily shop from home and I’ll digitally deliver you a personalized & printable gift certificate!
Easy AND Meaningful!

celebratory red headed graduate in green gown testimonial about the experience of being photographed by Calgary photog lori maloney

Simply visit the portrait boutique to order a portrait session for yourself or a woman you love.
Feel free to email me with any questions. Let’s together celebrate the girls & women in your life.

Every woman deserves a portrait she loves.

The Day of Transformation: an auspicious day for this announcement!

In astrology November 2 has the rather wonderful title of: The Day of Transformation. I didn’t know that until today but, in preparing to write this note, I had a peek and smiled at the synchronicity of it: that a project started six years ago, abandoned by the original creator in 2020, is finally ready - in its transformed state - to be published and purchased! <insert my happy tears!>

The first proof was BEAUTIFUL - wow, to hold something IN YOUR HANDS that you’ve worked so hard toward AND to feel it truly honours your subjects is pretty damned special. I did find a couple of small things I wanted to tweak… always in pursuit of a finished book we can all be really proud of! I expect to sign off on the final proof this week (I’m on the edge of my seat waiting for its arrival!)… which means: I’m NOW ready to take pre-orders for the book starting today through Sunday, November 15. Offering the book as a pre-order will allow us to get a volume discount, bringing the purchase price down and saving you on any shipping charges. Yay! 🙌

I am beyond thrilled to announce that I am now taking pre-orders for:
53 BIRTHDAYS: A PORTRAIT COLLECTION !

Book deets: an 8x10, 62 page hardcover book showcasing each of the 53 portraits on individual pages, with upgraded white end-sheets that add - as my daughter said - a gallery vibe, high quality pearl paper that ensures beautiful colour and contrast for these incredibly special portraits, a foreward written by a subject/author/friend/changemaker, a handful of wonderful quotes from people both within the collection’s pages and their loved ones, heartfelt recognition to those we’ve lost, and a whole lotta effort, heart & soul from yours truly! I am also really, really proud to have been able to produce a beautiful book while keeping the price to ‘$100 or under’, as I’d promised was my goal…book printing is new to me and I just desperately want for it to be accessible to all, especially given the current challenges we all face.

To purchase your copy(ies) simply e-transfer $80/book to lori@lorimaloney.com (no password required) with a note that includes your first and last name and the number of copies you’re purchasing (what a fun holiday gift for loved ones! 🤗) The books will be available for pick up in NW Calgary in early December (barring any delays because of Covid and/or postal delays).

If you’d like to arrange for a different payment method OR you will be unavailable to pick your order up in Calgary, please contact me using the email listed above and I’m sure we can work it out! 🙌

The book will be available on-line after November 15; however, the price will be higher, shipping charges from my publisher will apply, and no guarantees on a pre- Dec 25 delivery…I do hope you’ll get in on the pre-order!

This book of portraits represents so much….the joy of birthdays and what they might mean to each of us, the legacy of portraiture, the choice we each have to raise our hands when given the opportunity to participate in projects that might seem ambitious, and the tenacity & perseverance we can each summon when things don’t turn out as planned. I am beyond proud to be writing this note, to know that we crossed the finish line together, and that these portraits will live on in print. 🙏🏼

Whether you are a subject in this book, or someone who participated in the bigger Birthday Book Project, or if you are simply (wonderfully!) keen to support a local artist…I am deeply appreciative for each and every purchase.

My heartfelt thanks to the 58 people, across 53 birthdays, who raised their hands and allowed me the privilege of trying to capture a little piece of what they wished to convey; I hope you and yours LOVE what we’ve created together! I must also thank my family who have supported me throughout as I first exceeded the initial project’s commitment and then chose to navigate salvaging it. ❤️

…here’s to transformation!

xo Lori

BANNER DAY!

You guuuuyyyyssss! Today is a banner day over here at Lori Maloney Photography because today - TODAY! - I hit ‘send to publisher’ on the book proof for 53 BIRTHDAYS!

It all started as The Birthday Book Project but, as sometimes happens, the wheels of that particular ‘bus’ came off…it was super disappointing and I was left pondering:

Where do I go from here with the 53 portraits I’d shot for the project? How do I keep my word to my subjects?

My beautiful & wise kids were the ones to encourage that I publish my own damned book! (my words, not theirs 😉)…and here we are!

This has truly been a labour of love for me and I could not be more thrilled that - SOON - it will be in people’s hands…in the hands of those who both participated as subjects and those who have been in my corner throughout these last six years on the project. I’ve worked tirelessly trying to create a book we can all be proud of and I could cry (actually, I’m a little choked up typing this) that it is FINALLY coming to fruition!

There are plenty of individual thanks to be offered…for now though, massive appreciation to EACH OF YOU who has helped get us to ‘here’! It takes a village and mine is pretty fricken’ outstanding!

…now for a nap 😴 hahaha

xo Lori

PS I’ll send another note once I have approved the proof and the book is available for purchase…aiming for early November 🤗

Luca's Fundraising Success & Safer Beauty

I was thrilled to mentor 11 year old Luca in a photography project, to be auctioned off at the Kimmett Cup a few weeks back, benefitting the phenomenal Children’s Wish Foundation AB & NWT Chapter.

Last year, when it seemed as though Luca was just having a bad stomach ache, his spleen had ruptured. The MRI showed internal bleeding and the presence of Leukemia. He was quickly diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia and his medical team hurried to remove the spleen, perform a bone marrow aspiration, and start him on an aggressive eight-month chemotherapy plan…all part of the three and half year treatment plan he is currently on.

He went on to become a Children’s Wish Ambassador for the Kimmett Cup (he lOVES hockey!) & was granted his ‘wish’ of a camping trailer recently. ❤️

Look at that smile! Evidence of his indomitable spirit!

Working on his edits. Thanks to his mom for this picture.

Kimmett Cup 2020 with his brothers/team mates

Luca and I met a few times to plan his ideas for ‘a day through Luca’s eyes’, to get him up to speed on the camera he’d be using, to cull his photos to ensure a cohesive grouping, and then to edit his chosen images and decide on how they would be printed and displayed.

During the rather short period we had together Luca suffered a setback with the flu (which is super dangerous given his compromised immunity) and had to be hospitalized for a few days…but he - with his family’s help - persevered with enthusiasm, spending time driving both in the city and out in the country, both during the day and at night.

I love what Luca created - seeing his eyes light up as we downloaded the images HE had ‘seen’ and made, and then his excitement as we explored full creative freedom in our edits will forever make me smile. He was also adamant about how he wanted the images displayed and, thanks to Laura at PixPortal (the consumer side of Technicare), we were able to make his design happen! Look at his awesome work printed on aluminum & mounted on gator board, as he’d designed, for the auction. 💙

This year the Kimmett Cup raised over $200,00 with $125K going to Children’s Wish! Major kudos and gratitude to all involved in this amazing fundraiser…check out the Kimmett Cup site if you want to enrol a team for next year’s pond hockey tournament. If you’re keen to learn more about Children’s Wish, volunteer, or donate, click here. 🙏🏼

---

post-hysterectomy last Spring after years of undiagnosed hormonal imbalance 😩

Lastly, I remain committed to sharing Beautycounter with the world…because we ALL deserve safer beauty and most of us didn’t, or STILL DON’T, realize the harmful ingredients found in so many daily personal care products. If you’ve been thinking of switching over your skin care to a safer brand
- our NEVER LIST is now at 1,800+ ingredients we will never use in our products -
there’s a promotion happening RIGHT NOW…purchase any skin care regimen or collection and get a FREE GIFT, ranging in price from C$29 - C$93! If you’re unsure which line might best serve your skin, just take the quiz and also feel free to reach out to me anytime…I’m here annnnd I want you to know that you don’t need to trade safe for performance nor vice versa - Beautycounter is the whole package! 🙏🏼❤️💪

A few of my current faves are: the Countertime Line, lip sheer in Poppy (although Twig remains by daily go-to!), and Radiant Bronzer in Surf.

With gratitude,

xo Lori

Holly ❤️

In the Fall of 2018 I met Jon, a wonderful man and photographer. We were paired, at a workshop we were at, for a rather intense exercise...and a friendship was sealed. Shortly thereafter I had the pleasure of meeting his equally awesome wife, and instantly fell in love with her resilient, warm, and grateful spirit. (worth noting here is that while Jon & Holly were here for our first dinner together we received ‘the call’ from the vet saying that our precious, and very ill pup, Dixie, could not be treated...Holly was inimitable in her generous and caring support that night, and I remain deeply appreciative.)

For Christmas that year Jon gifted Holly a gift certificate for a portrait session with me; he’s a skilled photographer but thought she might enjoy the different dynamic of being photographed by someone she isn’t married to. 😉

A few months ago Holly received a diagnosis of Breast Cancer. It was a blow to her, to Jon, and to all of us who care for them. Shortly after receiving the news, Holly reached out to me to ask if we could secretly schedule her session...she wanted to not only capture “Holly, in that moment”, before any surgery or treatment, but she was mostly and especially keen to be able to gift images to Jon, her mom, and her kids for Christmas. With conspiratorial emails and texts, and help from her daughter Kenzie and niece Mary-Kate, we managed to pull it off with Jon none the wiser – a feat considering I had coffee with him a few days prior and had to be super mindful to not blurt out anything that might give us away!

We managed to shoot, she chose her images on the sly while on vacation with Jon in Hawaii, I edited them and got them printed, Mary-Kate picked them up and delivered them to Kenzie, and – BOOM – we got’er done before I left on my vacation & she started treatment. Women are truly incredible...and Holly epitomizes this!

I love this shot...I love how carefree Holly looks, dancing and laughing 😊. I love the joy I feel when I look at her here. May we all, even amidst the toughest of times, be able to tap into our carefree spirits the way Holly does. 🙏🏼

When I say ‘every woman deserves a portrait she loves.’ I mean it wholeheartedly. I also recognize that for many women the idea of being photographed is intimidating at least and uncomfortable at best...BUT having images of your beautiful self is so empowering – that chance to see ‘you’ as your loved ones do – and it is also an enormous gift to you and to all who love you. Providing this service to all women, and with very special reverence toward women facing or who have faced serious illness, is my heart’s work and my great honour. While I so wish I could go back in time to have professional portraits of my mom, portraits that she loved; it brings me comfort knowing that I can play a role in other women having images of themselves that show their badass, generous, kind, strong, resilient, graceful, and vulnerable natures…that show their authenticity.

Thank you, Holly, for your trust, for your inspiring nature, and for allowing me to share your beauty & grace with the world...all of it takes courage. I know I can speak for the collective when I say: we are sending you love & light as you embark on this new journey...you’ve got this! Thank you, Jon, for trusting me to create portraits of this woman you love…we couldn’t have known how special this gift would come to be, and I’m so grateful I was in a position to provide something special to Holly, to you, and to your family.

xo Lori

#portrait #warrior # cancer #breastcancer #resilience #courage #gratitude #woman #strength # beauty #grace #bnw #instagood #compassion #purpose #heartswork #fuckcancer #dancing #flowposing #canon #alienskin #yyc #studio #tombaker #wellspring #supportingwomen #lorimaloneyphotography #everywomandeservesaportraitsheloves

20/20...FOCUS

Are you someone who sets New Year’s resolutions? Resolutions have never served me but, over the years, I kept hearing of the idea of choosing a word, an intention, for the year. This appealed to me and so, at the dawn of 2019 and for the first time, I opted to do just that (you can read a post about that here: Friday Confessions After #tbt).

I chose DISCIPLINE last year and, while I didn't succeed in all the ways I’d hoped - I still have too many unread books on my bedside table 🙄 - I did manage to return to a near daily regimen of exercise and a more structured work schedule. I loved having this one constant reminder of a trait I hoped to cultivate. In fact, I found it so impactful that I was, and am, excited to do it for myself again this year.

Backstory: from 2013ish through 2018/19 I suffered from undiagnosed hormonal imbalance, this health strain together with being a full time mom (cook, chauffeur, therapist, coach, tutor, confidante…) & small business owner made it exceedingly difficult for me to truly focus for any period of time. There was the legitimate crazy of all there was to accomplish in a day on top of my body’s insane battle for mental clarity and energy. It was a really tough time and one of the things that I most missed was my ability to focus. Luckily, with the help of my amazing naturopathic docs at Integra and the required surgery last Spring, I am now back to my exuberant self! 💃🏻

A few weeks ago - when I found myself sitting quietly on the beach, under a full moon, surrounded by live music & happy Portuguese chit chat, thinking of this past year and pondering the next - I felt ready to choose my intention for this year: FOCUS. (true story: it was only as I started typing this blog post that I realized the rather obvious connection between 20/20 and focus 🤦🏻‍♀️😂 —> I blame too little sleep as I endeavoured to see every sunrise & set possible while in Brazil! 😉) I have some exciting dreams - personal & professional - that will require my consistent focus this year, and this decade…and I am so ready!

What intentions do you have this year? What trait might you hone so that you can more easily & purposefully attain your dreams? I’d love to hear from you in the comments - there’s something so powerful in sharing our intentions aloud!

With that, know that I am wishing each of you a beautiful year ahead filled with good health, joy, laughter, adventure, intention, and the right mix of challenge/ability to keep you growing and happy!

With gratitude,

xo Lori