The Solitude of Storms

Solitude has a different meaning to everyone. I have long been an ambivert, which has allowed me to thoroughly enjoy my moments of extroversion, but long for my moments of solitude to recharge my batteries. I began storm chasing just by happenstance. I saw a cell rip across Denver and I took a perfect reflection shot of lightning over the lake and I was hooked instantly. The following year in 2020, I had a 35-piece gallery that was set to go up in the Denver International airport and it got put on permanent hiatus when the world shut down. I have battled depression and anxiety since I was 18 so I felt like I was going to start spiraling if I didn't find a new purpose and meaning that year. The isolation happened to drive me to solitude on the eastern plains of Colorado trying to chase storms and capture lightning. I instantly became hooked on lightning when I captured my shot "Lightning on the Eastern Plains" and I found purpose and meaning in being able to capture light in the darkness to become a light for others to follow. At that point I still wasn't fully open about all my past struggles but the solitude that I experienced in the storms really helped me to bring my light to the world. Becoming a metaphor for being a light in the darkness for others to follow has become my guiding light in finding solitude in storms, even as I have endured many dark times over these transformative years of becoming a better person for others to look up to through my adventures.