Stroke Of Serendipity

My photography career started in 2016.

That August I had turned 24. My husband had bought me my first camera, which was a Canon T6.

I had wanted to take up photography for years, but never made the leap to give it a chance. I now had the camera, but quickly realized I had no clue how to use it. Life was very busy then. I worked full time. I had an 18 month old daughter, and I was pregnant with my son.

I managed to take a few photos, but that camera pretty much collected dust...

Until the universe told me to pick it up.

September 14, 2016 my life turned upside down. I had went out on a hike with friends and all of our children. Halfway through the hike, I felt a pop in my head.

This was immediately followed my sudden dizziness, nausea, and the worst headache of my life.

I had suffered a stroke.

I went in for emergency brain surgery.

The following months after that were intense. Long hospital stays, multiple procedures, and thankfully, a beautiful healthy newborn! Coming home after it all was hard. I had a Hemmorhagic Stroke, caused by a ruprtured Arteriovenous Malformation. My brain was now in a delicate state, and it wasn't retaining information like it once was.

Days would go by, but I wouldn't remember them. I hated it. My kids were growing up so quickly, and I wasn't grasping onto the memories like I once had been able to do. I finally picked up that camera, and quickly became obsessed with taking pictures and holding onto those moments. I started to use my camera almost like a backup drive, because I knew how quickly those memories would be gone from my mind.

My pictures, and my photography became so much more than I could have ever imagined.