Justin is graduating!

It gets fuzzy but I think I first met Justin when he was about 8 years old. Marcia, his mom asked me in on a project dear to her…to document their children playing in their long time family home that they were preparing to sell. The kids playing on the swing set, fishing on the pond, the afternoon light streaming through their kitchen window and even their dog standing in the front doorway waiting to be called outside- all those memories you want to hold onto forever.  It was a fun project and we put together a beautiful book to help remember their beloved home titled, “4114 North Canyon Road”.  After some senior sessions with oldest daughter Rachel and son Ryan over the years, it is finally Justin’s turn, to move in the direction of the front door of their new home, on his way out into the world to whatever the future brings.

The session was playful and fun. Afterwards, I sent Marcia and Geoff and email, “Your son is absolutely charming, adorable and kind. I really enjoyed getting to know him better as we plodded around High Hill searching for art and light…He’s got a wonderful, confident and humble connection to the world around him that made me smile. Congrats. I know you are super proud. I can only hope for something similar for my own offspring.”

Here’s the thing, there is no defined plan for raising kids, no chart to follow, no graph to plot, and even the most different of approaches can still yield fabulous and connected kids. It’s work that we lovingly undertake without knowing how it is all going to turn out. Sigh.

Justin plans on a gap year after graduation and is heading to Europe for that oh so exciting international exploration. I want to be eighteen again! Oh, and something funny, his only requirement for this session was that his images were better than those of his brother, Ryan. Love that!