It’s hard to even know where to begin. 2021 was full and rich and challenging and beautiful. I’m just going to list a few of the key moments as we look forward to an exciting 2022. We drove 40,000 miles and visited 27 states. We logged dozens of new interviews and hundreds of new studio portraits. We stood beside the border wall on the day … Continue reading Year in review
This photo is the last place we slept in our trailer. It was a gorgeous location that softened the blow a bit as we learned that our camper frame had failed. The timing coincided with a planned break from the road as we flew back to the Midwest, so all in all, this has been a gentle catastrophe. For these past six weeks, we’ve been … Continue reading Trailer update
The important thing is, we are safe. There are 1,000 ways this could have been devastating, and somehow, we were fortunate enough that it is only inconvenient. The frame on our trailer failed. We spent much of the fall in Minnesota and Wisconsin while our trailer was stored in Washington state. We returned to move it to Southern California as the weather got colder. We … Continue reading But we are safe
We’ve witnessed some remarkable terrain in this year on the road. If there’s such a thing as a spiritual home, I’ve been at the center of mine for the past two months in the Pacific Northwest. Their combination of mountain and sea, wrapped in a lush green blanket is my idea of paradise. But, as they say, there is trouble in paradise. The Northwest suffered … Continue reading Watching the earth
Paul Kaye is the President of Peace Awareness Labyrinth & Gardens and the President of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness in Los Angeles, California. “If you want to feel strong, then be against something. You’ll feel immediately strong. You’ll get righteous, right? Or you’ll judge something. The thing is, it’s power, but it’s false power.” The Peace Awareness Labyrinth “We were fortunate to find a person who could make … Continue reading Paul Kaye
Noemi Aidee Tungui Aguilar comes from the Purépecha people of Michoacán, Mexico. She is an activist and an educator, on a journey to celebrate her culture that was nearly wiped out through colonialism. I met Noemi at a Water Protectors camp near Palisade, Minnesota where she went by the camp name Luna. She traveled there from her home in California to protest the construction of the Line … Continue reading Noemi Aidee Tungui Aguilar
Ken Craft is the founder and CEO at Hope of the Valley rescue mission. I interviewed him at the Alexandria Park Tiny Home site, the largest tiny home community in the state of California. At that site, there are 103 tiny homes, 200 beds, toilets, sinks, laundry facilities and services. As Ken says, “Anything and everything that somebody would need to overcome the barriers that … Continue reading Ken Craft
Rev. Andy Bales is the president and CEO at Union Rescue Mission on Skid Row in Los Angeles, California. “It should be very apparent to us how we’re failing, but I’m not sure what falsehood or lie we’re caught up with that we think this is okay.” “I worked my whole life to end up on skid row and finally made it about 16 years … Continue reading Andy Bales
Vincent Turner once lived on the streets of Los Angeles, in a liquor store parking lot. He tried to build barriers to keep others out because he was disappointed with himself. He knew he was hurting himself and he didn’t like hurting others. When he was ready for change, he used the one bus token in his pocket to go to the Union Rescue Mission … Continue reading Vincent Turner
It’s not often that I go out without my camera, but that’s what I did on Skid Row in Los Angeles the other day. “Be careful,” my contact at the shelter told me. “Watch out for yourself,” said the security guard in the garage as I handed him my keys and walked up the ramp toward the bright light of the street. They had good … Continue reading Skid Row
