the hummingbird and the fire
a big fire broke out in the forest, and all the animals had to run to the river. they were heartbroken and angry, expressing how there was nothing that could be done… except for one little hummingbird, Nenookaasi. the hummingbird flew to the river, got a tiny beakful of water, and flew straight into the flames. after she dropped her water on the flames, she flew straight out, too quickly for the fire to burn her, then she went back to the river. she filled her beak and returned to the flames to drop another beakful onto the fire. when she flew out this time, all of the animals were looking at her like she was wasting her time. Nenookaasi didn’t pay attention to the others: she kept moving. after a while, one of the animals finally looked at her and said, “what do you think you are doing..?” Nenookaasi just kept moving as she looked back and said, “i’m doing what i can.”
-an Ojibwe legend-
i have no idea what i’m doing here… and that’s okay. i think most of us walk through our lives on auto-pilot, doing what we’ve been told is “the right thing to do.” why does someone else get to decide what that looks like for us, before we get the opportunity to go and find out for ourselves?
about to enjoy a nutritious snack on our sunrise hike. my older brothers told me that the main source of protein is the wrapper…
lifelong white belt
i used to think i had to work 9-5, dress a certain way and even act in a way that made everyone around me feel like they could relate to me. what i didn’t realize was… the only real way to be relatable is to be authentic. how could someone relate to me when i’m full of shit? my good friend always said “be so deeply rooted in yourself that no one can move you.” when that became my reality, i saw that life can be a beautiful thing.
before i fully embraced this thought, i was feeling exhausted from all the years of acting, not even realizing what i had been doing to myself. eventually, i was faced with a choice: continue to fight, suffering to become something i was not… or relentlessly follow my heart, unapologetically. and damn, does the latter feel good.
these pictures are less than two years apart. same dude, different mindset.
the hoodies
one thing that fills up my heart is making handmade hoodies. i love to create things with specific people or events in mind. tell me a little about yourself: favorite band, podcast, artist, sports team or whatever it may be, and when i send you your hoodie, you’ll know that it was made with you in mind… by a dude in his garage, doing what he’s doing for one reason: to make you feel special. to him, that is everything.
or don’t… that was a test.