Dale Chihuly Hand Blown Glass with Beautiful Colors and Shapes.
Sharing thoughts for your home or office or gift for your love ones.
My parents were born in Liberia. Liberia is a country in West Africa that was settled by freed slaves from the United States in the early 1800s, yearning for freedom. The motto on the Liberian seal states, The Love of Liberty Brought Us Here. I was born in the USA while my father was attending Harvard University. As you might imagine, most young college students are not equipped to take care of themselves, much less a baby.
My grandmother swooped in and took me to live with her in Liberia, West Africa. I wanted to become a medical doctor, so after high school, I left Liberia to attend college in North Carolina. A couple of things happened on my way to becoming a doctor, I found out I was squeamish around blood and icky stuff. More importantly, there was a military coup d’état in Liberia. My Uncle was assassinated along with several other family members.
In the USA, I graduated with honors a bachelor’s degree in Biology. I knew I didn’t want to be a doctor anymore and I didn’t want to teach. So, what was a girl to do with a biology degree?
While I contemplated what to do, I joined the US Air Force Reserves. After fulfilling my obligations to the Air Force, I went back to school, studied computer programming and became a Systems Engineer, married and had two wonderful sons. I also became a member of the Professional Photographers of America. I am a volunteer photographer of the Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep organization (NILMDTS.org) which provides free heirloom photographic memories for grieving families who have lost the babies in child birth or right after birth.
I have always loved pictures and began dabbling in photography. People would tell me I “have an eye.” One Christmas, my husband bought me my first 35mm Canon camera. I became a certified professional photographer so that I could capture and portray more unique and memorable stories with my images that would hang on the walls of people all over the world. I started off saying I was a “People Photographer”. I delighted in portraits and events. I gradually realized that I am blessed with a gift to enjoy and share the vivid beauty around me no matter what form is.
I am always drawn to the art work of Dale Chihuly. His work with blown glass and his vision for his work is inspiring. On a visit to Seattle, Washington, I realized that I was about 10 minutes away from the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, naturally I had to visit. I begged my husband and son to drop me off at the museum so that I could explore. They gave me a time limit which was ridiculously short. I agreed, knowing I would not stick to that time limit.
Once inside the museum, I was in total awe of nearly every display. Beautiful colors of blown glass and exquisite arrangements of all shapes, heights and sizes greeted me. I was totally blown away. Needless to say, I did not stick to the agreed upon time limit since I had to capture as many as I could to preserve what my eyes were seeing. Yes, I got scolded when I finally got back to the car, well past my time limit, but to me, it was worth it. I got my shots!
Enjoy the view!
