Parts of me

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Dear Reader, Suraj here –

After my writing on hobbies, I did some reflecting on what I could pursue as a ritual. A hobby, yes, but I wanted something that I could make a ritual in my life: something meditative. I’m happy to share that I’ve found something.

Photography and filmmaking have been amongst the dozens of things that I’ve dabbled with over the years. I remember when I was in middle and high school, I’d watch hundreds of YouTube videos about the art of making videos and taking good photos. There were multiple times when I’d fall asleep with a video playing and wake up to a dead phone (there was no auto-pause feature back then).

Even though I didn’t have my own camera, I was the official photographer for my school and the Rotaract and Interact Clubs I was part of. They gave me their cameras because I had enough knowledge to take decent photos.

Over time, however, I took fewer and fewer photos.

When I moved to Nepal’s capital for grades 11 and 12, I didn’t have easy access to a camera. So I’d take photos on my phone. That did not inspire me as much.

As someone who had spent so much time honing my eye for a good photo, it was discouraging when the photos coming out of my beat-up iPhone X didn’t reflect my vision.

I would need a better camera: a better tool.

That was something I couldn’t afford. Hence, my excitement for photography and filmmaking gradually faded.

Over the past week, as I was thinking about hobbies to develop, I recalled a desire to tell stories.

So, I bought a used camera on Facebook Marketplace.

I may have used the money I was saving to go back to Nepal next year, but I figured it’s okay to wait a little.

I’ve been talking to Michael about how to best pursue my hobby without letting it overtake other important tasks. Still figuring that out, but I have something to start with. And that I’m happy about.

So perhaps expect more photos on my Instagram.

I’ll see you next week.

Warmly,
Suraj

If you'd like to hear more from me, here's my YouTube channel where I share lessons, experiments, tools, and resources to make life just a little better.