the most underrated national park served as a backdrop of breathtaking beauty, which is the very culmination of who we are in society. mendhi is cool now, but stank when I wore it. bindi was referred to as dot people, but now it is marketed by the celebrities. haldar is known to heal all, but western worlds have called it too-mer-ic chai tea. so here is the juxtaposition of brown | beauty in every way that is who I am, alongside a soul who GETS me and made this possible.

Mirrors in our homes serve as objects to aid us in satisfying our look as we step into the world. Be it the makeup that we lather on our faces, the sunscreen we protect our skins with, the clothing that adorns our bodies of every shape, color, and size… we tend to seek approval of our choices. If it matches, if it is even, if it is blended, if it is revealing enough, or if it is protecting enough.. the questions we tick off. Mother nature does not seek our approval, but rather begs us to pause and appreciate her. When we see our own reflection, we are quick to respond, but when we see her reflection, we are forced to be patient to revel in her existence. For without her, we have nothing.

how do we view the collision of the sun and moon with the rays and stars? usually we focus on what is right ahead of us or find ourselves fighting with the unknowns of the future we cannot yet hold. when we look upwards to the sky though, night or day, we are looking at the past that predates us. how we interact with nature though, stills time, to savor the moment we are in, fully. this is because nature grounds us. each time I capture an image of the rays of moonlight or sunlight, I am reminded to take a deep breath. the inhale of crisp mountain air filling my lungs with a potency rivaling serenity.