some are silver, some are gold.

i “met” my friend Gretchen a few years ago in an online photography workshop we were taking together. clear as day, i can remember her assignment submissions, especially her final project image. it still blows my mind. i remember thinking “this chick is rad and i’m pretty sure shes way too cool and creative to hang with the likes of me”. for sometime after, i quietly followed her on facebook as she happily stunned me with every image she posted. she has a way of capturing a subject in the best possible light and most endearing expression, all the while keeping in the quirks that is true to their individual spirit. i’m not entirely sure where she came from, but her inherent talent is a treasure.

about a year ago, we had the chance to meet one another in person in Texas for a workshop we were helping with for The Bloom Forum where we were both moderators. to say we clicked instantly is an understatement. she is probably the sweetest, most down to earth person i’ve met in my whole life. since meeting in person, our friendship has turned into a kind where we could flood one another at midnight with a phone call if needed. both having three small children, husbands who are at work more than not and having an art that we share in, we’ve grown to understand each other far beyond the online world.

a few weeks ago, i boarded a plane for Portland to visit my dear friend and snuggle up to her new beautiful boy, August. i was so excited, it felt more like i floated from Los Angeles to Portland. Gretchen and i spent the weekend surrounded in a sparkly montage of girl talk, recipe swapping, nursing, crepes, and wee boy humor. like teenagers, we text each other back and forth from our rooms at bedtime. looking at this photo, i miss her. a lot. our days looked a lot like this and it was utterly perfect…