on saying yes

i don't normally post with just words so forgive the following diversion.

i started a new project tonight (i can't show pictures due to the nature of it) and as always, when i start a project in which i'm feeling nervous/scared and vulnerable, i always remember the wisdom that was passed to me:

it's the concept of saying yes.

saying yes to people - when you're most afraid of them.

saying yes - when you're vulnerable and alone.

saying yes - that you'll listen to their pain.

it's through this extension that i think we grow and expand. i rarely grow when i plug into a "healthy" system and flow. rather, it's when i stumble onto a flow that i don't recognize - when my gut reaction is unease and fear - that i see an opportunity to grow.

when i feel most afraid, i often find subjects are often just as afraid of me.
and it's when we say yes together, that the beauty of photojournalism blooms.

the chance to say yes when you long to say no.