There is a patron at the library whom I’ve helped several times a week for six years (since I started working at my current job). It strange how you get to know a person when you interact with them daily. Our relationship is purely professional, yet, I still kind of care about this person on a personal level. The past few weeks I have noticed that he has aged about 20 years. It all seems to be happening very quickly. One day he was fine, the next day he was hunched over, could barely walk without holding on to something. He is in a lot of pain. I helped him a few weeks ago and asked him how he was doing and he talked to me about being ready do die, to see his loved ones on the other side. I don’t know what is wrong with him, but I can see with my own eyes that he is dying. This has been weighing heavily on me these past few weeks, even while I was on my vacation. I will be very surprised if he is still around when I return to work next week. The sad thing about this person is that he has been researching and talking about buying a new car and going on a road trip across America for six years. He finally bought his dream van a few months ago and has been getting it all fixed up. And now this.

I had this conversation with friends over a late night sangria while I was in Spain, and we all agreed: Do the things. Just get out there and do them. Don’t wait. Do them now.

I am so grateful to have met so many wonderful people all over the world who share my passion for pinhole photography. I am not sure how exactly we figured out to meet up two years ago when we first met up in Amsterdam on pinhole day. I know it started as a joke, but somehow it became a reality, and now it is an annual thing and it is fantastic. I am so glad I took a step in the direction of my dreams and didn’t wait. Amsterdam could have just been left at being a joke. I am so glad we decided to take the idea seriously.