Last night was my first night sleeping on a train and it was AMAZING! I had breakfast with three very talented passengers (Mat, Garrett, and Christian). During breakfast, I shared a secret about why I'm not following the other passengers in Instagram right away. I told them that I want to learn the person first before I learn their work. Perfect example- the first night's dinner. I say across from Garrett. I remember listening to him tell his story about packing up a 67 impala and heading west and I'm thinking "holy crap! He's my hero." Later that night, I went and finally laid eyes on his Instagram feed and I was absolutely blown away by how talented he is! I want to feel that way with everyone because he made me appreciate his presence more.

After breakfast, we got to hear the amazing Jeffrey talk about community and how it relates to real life. He spoke about different Instagram communities across the country and their charteristics. Listening to Jeffrey explain how many communities we actually enter and exit on average day was pretty freaking eye opening.

After we were all settled in, I headed out to take on my own project! Today, I was able to take the first portrait in my "Autism Actually Speaks" project (in collaboration with Autism Speaks). I was able to meet up with Nicholas and his family at the Alder Planiterium. Nicholas is a non verbal 17 year old on the autism spectrum who obviously has a heart of gold! I was able to spend time with Nicholas and his older sister Isabella and watching how much they love each other really warmed my soul!

Here are some of my favorite photos from the day, including one of Nicholas and his sister.

Isabella and Nicholas enjoying a fun moment!