One of the best things about running a boudoir blog is having an endless archive of inspirational photos that I can share with people all over the world. One of my favorite compliments is when a past client reaches out to me in excitement seeing their photos on Pinterest as inspiration to someone else.
You never know who you are inspiring when you begin to walk in your own truth.
The fact of the matter is that we each are someone's goal in life. I have many women come to see me for many different reasons. Some of them for wedding gifts, others for birthday gifts, many to celebrate weight journeys, but the ones that always stick out are my clients who do this once they have been diagnosed with a life-changing illness.
Ms. A is a personal friend of mine. We have known each other since college. We met through a sorority sister of mine. While I won't share with the world what her exact diagnoses was (thank GOD the doctors said she was in remission!), I will say that she had one of the rarest forms in the world. So rare that she didn't fit the spectrum who would contract this disease.
Let me tell you, Ms. A is a F-I-G-H-T-E-R to her pure core. I remember visiting her in her hospital room not afraid for her future. Because I knew her story wouldn't end up the way that so many who contract this rare disease do. I knew with absolute faith that she would conquer this. Ms. A is not one to go down easy in a fight. I don't know if I have ever seen her lose one. She is an angel protected by the spirit of God and love.
One of the things she loves doing the most is helping the unhoused. Every year before her illness she held a HUGE yearly event where a bunch of friends would come together on Christmas day and spend it helping the homeless. Every year, she would cry at the end of it. Knowing that there was so much more to be done to help these souls.
The unhouse community always received us with warm love. They loved that we came and brought them REAL food (often during the holiday season people give them nothing but candy. Therefore they loved when we gave them nutritious food). They loved that we prayed with them. Talked to them. Took Photographs with them... like they were real people… because they are. Even before the event, Alisa would go down to the unhoused areas and speak to some of the main leaders of these encampments to see how we could help them. She wanted people to see our unhoused sisters and brothers as real people who have real issues and to not ignore them. She is an advocate for the unheard and a warrior for us all.
This is why this set is so special to me. While Ms. A is a trained dancer, what makes these photos so beautiful is that you can see her magnificent spirit radiates through each frame. She took these photos perhaps a year after being first diagnosed. She was still going through her treatments and may have just finished them. While she was still weak and lost a ton of weight from everything, she powered through our session together.
When I see her I feel power, tranquility, leadership, warrior, and nurturance.
I see a living Goddess.
So when people come to me assuming women come to me to "just look sexy", I have to let them know that.... that's not what boudoir is about. Yes, looking good is a by-product of it, but women want to revel in their natural feminity because the world will put us through some of our toughest journeys... some that may even, quite literally, have us fighting for our lives.
Thank You Ms. A for granting me the privilege of photographing you. You are amazing.
