The beginning of a story is never where the story started…

When setting out to create something, it takes acknowledgment of growing pains and consistent effort in intention to keep doing something while you’re bad at it.

There is a whole chapter in darkness. Being planted in the dirt alone, waiting. When roots start branching out you’re likely finding stability and confidence in mastery of self and learning of craft. Roots sprouting is a whole first chapter before any growth can be recognized by others. Self recognition of a job well done is its own beast and there are lots of parts that it may appear there is no progress being made.

I started creating this virtual place on October 3rd, 2025, but I bought my camera in March of 2020, a way to encourage myself to brave the blazing heat of the desert outside. At that time I was a machine gunner in Twenty-nine Palms, California. stationed with ANIMAL company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment. I had taken a photography class in high-school on a whim and enjoyed it. I was only 20 minutes from the Joshua National Park entrance, and got free admission as active duty military anyway.

I intend to create a place that I can put my journey on display, So that others may read it and find some similarity. An open book into my physic and problem solving-reframing I chose.

A place to come back to as a log of my journey. A digital garden to walk through. An effort to reflect and pay tribute to all the wonderful opportunities I’ve been fortunate enough to receive.

But also so that maybe by laying my journey on display it might provide some sense of ease in another whose at a loss or people who like photography.

The following is an excerpt from my journal January 2024. I was living in eastern Tennessee in my papa’s house and studying online to become a personal trainer.

Awareness is always the first step. See things as they really are, ask yourself why, and what part do you play? How or where can you re-allocate some of your power?

Then Intention. Move forward with a clear intention of how you would like to show up, instead of where your subconscious/ default settings might take you. This won’t go seamlessly, so bring in a healthy dose of ompassion and grace to yourself as you move through the world with a clear new intention. If you misstep rather than getting down on yourself, instead evaluate in hindsight, how would you of liked to show up? Write about it, and if necessary, apologize and clearly state your intention to the person on the receiving end of your misstep; even if that person is you.

And Thirdly, Consistency. Show up every day with as much ambition as you had on the first day. Let yesterday stay in yesterday, regardless of how “good” or “bad” it was. Today is where you make all of your decisions, so focus on today.

Every mis-step is still a step in your story. No one’s journey looks the same, so never compare yourself to another, just as no one should compare themselves to you. As Jared (my brother) says, “we’re all on our own little journeys!” So discover yours. Enjoy it. The lower the lows opens up an opportunity for higher highs. Throughout this whole process, trust yourself.

Trust that what you are doing is the best you can do for that moment. Trust that you’re able to make the change. Trust that wherever it might look like your path is taking you, as long as you’re showing up with intention and integrity in that intention, your path is heading in the right direction. No one said it was a straight line. Paths twist and turn, double back, have dead ends and forks in the road. So too will your journey. Don’t lose sight of the good, your awareness to change, your intention to show up differently and the consistency to stay on the path that you forget there is a goal behind it. Remember when you’re feeling down and feel like you’re failing, that at least you’re trying. At least there is an end goal, a reason an intention. Otherwise, you’d just be wandering aimlessly, not knowing what you're even looking for. Which within its own lens can be right at times too. It’s all about what you’re striving for, change, knowledge, awareness, etc. But no one says you need to listen to me, I’m just a guy writing about my experience drinking coffee and sitting on the floor.

-C.J. (Jan 29, 2024)