When people asked me when I was a little girl what I wanted to be when I grew up, I had three answers: 1. A barbie 2. a firefighter and 3. an artist. 

The journey becoming a Barbie came to a quick end when I realized it wasn’t an option. I highly respect firefighters but realized that that wasn’t a calling I felt like I had. But, the artist…oh the artist stuck around. I thrived in art class throughout school, really loved it but never fully committed to the idea of it. In college, to make a little money on the side, I painted acrylics for friends and started a small business painting watercolors of houses. I loved it, but the monotony of painting houses and the vulnerability of paint canvases for clients didn’t seem to be right with me. I was frustrated. I loved art behind a camera lens, with a pen in my hand going across paper, paint brush with paint at the tip but I wanted to know how to combine them all into one.