A Ray of Hope

I believe that one of the wonderful aspects of this platform is our ability to share freely and refocus our mental goals. I have found that having several moments to write on Vocal Media during my own stressful life has proven to be an incredible relief. I am thankful for the opportunity to find peace in this article. As a high school student, I always wrote creatively and have used my words purposefully with intent to inspire change. This creative passion ebed and flowed until I found my dream, and upon the crashing waves, I found my hope.

The Greatest Adventure

This journey began in the heart of the Canadian Rockies, and although our Thanksgiving has already past, there is much more gratitude to share. I was on the trails of Banff, searching for my ambitions, and attempting to envision my future. We found ourselves driving long into the night, captivated in conversation by our fellow adventurers, and appreciating the folk tunes of the mountain. We spent several days exploring the peaks from Alberta to British Columbia. I knew I needed to document my trip with thrilling photos and videos. I began early on rockbound beaches as the sunlight peeked through the rising mist. I have very few moments in my life that encompassed that same sense of abandon, but I am thankful for those experiences. I found myself running on the chilling sand as the sun drew mirages in the distance. In those fleeting seconds, I realized my life was going to be bold. I realized that I was going to deepen my purpose with every minute, and to this day, I have not looked back.

Admittedly, my route of life was not the most responsible or logical, but those are memories I will always cherish. I am thankful that those joyful instances were brought into fruition, after all, the hours we safeguard often make the most impactful shifts in our story. Regrettably, this narrative is not about the extravagant getaways, as many of us cannot sustain that spontaneous lifestyle. I shortly returned home to the jewel of the Canadian prairies, Saskatchewan.

I have never felt more dull. I was working as a barista for most hours of the day, tossing all my tips into the adventure fund. Sadly, as life inevitably develops, my savings were depleted to pay all the unforeseen expenses of growing up. I managed to collect enough money to purchase a cheap camera bundle. Hopefully, if I ever won the lottery to afford another embarkment, my adventures would be documented in much better quality. I started using the DSLR to capture some of my friends and share small memoirs of their dreams for the future. I struck pure gold. I had never felt more adventurous in my life, and simply by listening to the wonderful aspirations of earnest individuals. I was inspired to journal as many of these goals as I could and accompanying each plot with a determined face. I was ultimately encouraged to chase happiness with no restraint, but I did not truly learn the thankfulness behind my bliss until more of my own life began to unfold.

The Coming Year

I began to rearrange the values in my life. I made the conscious choice to choose to hunt success, despite my own failures. I chose to be thankful for the few viewers who appreciated my work, rather than complaining I had not yet achieved the audience I planned. I worked tirelessly on my photography and began to book paid work, I had written countless stories of accomplishment, and yet I found myself longing to stumble across my own. Although, I am grateful for those who chose to trust my skill before my experience. Over the next eight months, I saved enough money to travel back into the wilderness, twice. I transitioned from creating lifestyle content to the travel photographer that always seems to be on the move. I stood at the base of pounding waterfalls, on the edge of the steepest cliffs, and in the waves of the cold Pacific Northwest. I was content with the direction of my life. In between my travels, I still shot portrait photography for friends and family. I hosted a graduation shoot for an acquaintance of mine, and at the same moment, I invited another photographer to collaborate with me. In those several hours, we collided in creativity, but in the coming year, we fell in love.

Perfectly Thankful

I am nearly twenty-one, I am engaged to the same photographer I collaborated with, and I have elapsed one year and eight months since the first adventure. As I began to mature and grow in myself, I decided to progress into shooting weddings and intimates. I would argue that my line of work offers some of the most emotionally-engaging and heartwarming experiences any job could give. I believe that capturing the truest intimacy of any couple is bound to give some insight towards the purpose of pursuing happiness. In my own pursuit, I have come to the epiphany that the objective of life is chasing hope to secure joy, and maturing joy into thanksgiving.

Often, I reminisce about how quickly my life changed, and truthfully, I started writing on Vocal Media to attempt to help pay for my wedding next May. I learned the other day, during another family wedding, that thankfulness can only be found through relationship. We gather to celebrate how we have painted joy by brushing our qualities on each other. If you take one step back, relive the smallest instances in your life, even the worst memories. There is a universal beauty that allows thankfulness to thrive, we have created a balance that invokes hope within the most discouraging circumstances, and we continue to stand.

I have watched many relationships develop in my life: brotherhood, sisterhood, or marriage. I took several minutes to contemplate the meaning behind these bonds; the way a brother will wrestle his sibling to the ground, or how every sister can be your next boss, or how your spouse chooses to lead you into life. I am thankful that we can take opportunities to witness how romanticizing our memories can surge significance into our families. What is a brother or sister without those moving traits? How can marriage be important without the idea of an everlasting covenant? I recommend selecting several memories in your life to recognize the influence of love. I shared my most exciting chapters to highlight some ideas about thankfulness I can only understand now. The adventure across the stunning Canadian mountain-scape meant nothing without sharing the thrill of my journey through relationship. I am thankful for the expedition, but I am entirely gratified with the friendship that brought meaning to those memories. I am thankful for choosing to find an interest in photography, but I am indebted to the friend who told me to purchase a camera. I found the love of my life, and every single day I am thankful for her presence, but I will be made wholeheartedly complete in marriage forever.

During Thanksgiving, we may indulge in our finest cabernet and roast the richest meat, but those luxuries are only fulfilled in relationship. In whichever way you celebrate, remember that those who surround you have impacted your life and sculpted your mold into the wonderful person you are today. Our loving hearts tread beyond the hurtful words or the most faithful vow, they find peace in the hope we continually walk upon. As we run towards the joyfulness of spending cozy evenings appreciating our loved ones, forgive their brokenness, forgive your own, and allow the purity of relationship to breed thankfulness in your life. After all, you wrote your unique story, but they provided the words.

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