Honestly this is ME

Melancholy is in my heart today. I miss my dad a lot. I have a friend who just lost her father yesterday. My heart is breaking for her loss. I can't help but think of losing my own father. Has it only been 4 months? Feels like yesterday that my soul went down the rabbit hole of grief.

Like Alice wondering around in a new strange land, she had to learn how to adapt to her new normal...

You never "get over" losing a loved one. Loss is a part of the human experience, however, it is my least favorite part.

I would give everything just to "bum around town" hunting down used bookstores all over Seattle with my Dad. My dad is the one who gave me my love of books. I am a reader because he took the time to read to me. We would spend hours at a myriad of musty used bookstores around the University of Washington campus. Those days were nothing special to anyone else but us.

There is something about taking an honest self-portrait that makes you face different aspects of who you really are. When I lived in Montpellier France, I was lucky to see an art exhibit featuring Gustave Courbet. His haunting self-portrait, The Desperate Man, is powerful and raw.

Courbet taught me the importance of exploring different parts of the ever changing me.

Today I needed to see who I have become since my father died.

I challenge you to take a real self-portrait, NOT a selfie (however that is another modern art form all together). Be that person you find in your bathroom mirror late at night.

So...this is me.

No make-up. No fancy clothes. No agenda.

This is me behind the razzle dazzle.

Hello.

I am just a girl with a lot of hopes and dreams working on being a good human being. I am blessed that I lead a very happy life. I love my family and friends. Orange Blossom Lanes is my happy space to share me with you. I am lucky that most of my days are filled with sunshine and blessings.

Being a mom is hard. Being a good wife takes work. Being a leader in the community is rewarding and exhausting. Doing laundry is never ending.

I am just like you.

Honestly...this is me.

Love, Sem xoxo

Photography by: Semra F.C. Eichelberger