In this very short life of ours, how should we spend our time?
I find that this notion of “you only live once” to be powerful, and fuels myself with curiosity every single day. If there’s one thing photography and travel has taught me, it is that the world is open for us to explore and conquer. I say, take the endless road to nowhere. Find yourself in the face of the unknown, camera in hand, prepared to take on whatever comes your way.
The open world
Don’t be boring. Maybe this is the only sin in life? The more you close yourself off to new experiences, the more boring your life will be.
I often think of my curiosity with Israel. I spent six months studying in Jerusalem and after graduating, I decided to return. I volunteered on a kibbutz in Haifa, milking cows, gardening in the fields, and integrated myself in a community in a new place. I actually wound up finding myself at dead end, with a lack of inspiration to make anything out of this trip with my photography. After a month, I packed my bags in the middle of the night, and left on a bus the next day without notifying anybody. I went all the way from the north of Israel to the lowest elevated city in the world, Jericho. I arrived at midnight and knocked on the door of the hostel. I was kind enough to be let in, and live with a Palestinian family for the next three months. I spent my mornings cleaning the outside street in this refugee camp, burning trash, making beds, eating breakfast with the family, and spending the rest of my day exploring the streets of Jericho. I would pray in the masjid and was invited to join and to learn about Islam. I slept on the floor of the mosques all throughout Jericho, and learned about the ways of Mohammed for two weeks. At the end of this journey of prayer, fasting, and learning, I was converted to Islam. By following my curiosity with a camera in hand, anything can happen. The more open you are to new experiences in this open world, The closer you become to the front lines of life.
Follow your own path
Inspired by my time spent in Israel, I decided to join the Peace Corps. My experience in Zambia, Africa as a rural aquaculture promotion specialist, working with fish farmers in rural villages, is an experience that I will never forget. It taught me that you truly don’t need much to thrive. A simple borehole with clean water, fish in a lake, a roof over your head, a church, and family, are the keys to a prosperous life. I found myself biking along dirt paths into unknown territory. Each day was an adventure.
Overcoming fear
I remember one time I went to pee in my little outhouse, which is essentially just a hole in the ground that you have to squat over, and found a snake dangling from the roof. I started screaming “BAMAYOOO” which means “mother” like a little kid. She came running out and swatted the snake away and I spent the evening laughing hysterically over dinner with my host family. I was even shocked by lightning on my foot at one point during this trip. I had to kill scorpions, trudged through swamps in thunderstorms, and hitchhike on the back of random pick up trucks at some points during my travels. I find that my time spent in the village influences how I approach my everyday life in the United States. I’m not afraid to walk my own way, talk to strangers, or engage with different people. Everything seems way less scary now after overcoming some challenges and fears living off the grid in a remote village in Africa.
You don’t respawn in real life
I think it’s fun to treat life like the ultimate video game in hard-core mode, where you don’t ever respawn. All of the superfluous material possessions, hedonistic pleasures, luxury goods, mean nothing at the end of your life. The experiences and memories you create now on this day is what really matters. Don’t try to impress people or do anything that you deem to be a waste of your time. When you really think about it, life is so fucking beautiful because we only live once.
Our time on this planet is very short. Treat everyday like it’s your last.