{ Hands and tales (Day 441) }

I don’t remember the exact moment that I came to be fascinated with hands but I do remember the moment that I first snapped a photo of hands due to my interest in them. The precious hands that I shot were my Yia yia’s (grandma) and she couldn’t understand why I would want a picture of those fingers.  True they were knobby and the skin was translucent with the years but they were beautiful to me.  Those hands had nurtured babies, cooked countless tasty Greek meals, worked hard and long, typed up accounts on a typewriter, entwined in her husbands till death did them part, and countless other things.

Hands tell a story.  People’s lives touch others and it has a powerful effect.  I’ve been wanting to do something with pictures of hands and people for a while now but it wasn’t until I discovered the facebook page for Humans of New York that I knew what I wanted to do.  So being inspired by that project and book I want to share with you the people that I have met and will meet.  I was blown away by the vulnerable and beautiful responses that I got from the first two women I photographed.  Today I share with you Monica.

What’s one of the most challenging things you’ve worked through?

“My parents divorce. I’ve realized that some of the fears I have in my life stem from it, like my fear of being unfaithful in marriage. I have always entered into a relationship with such fear that I find it ruins me from the inside out and the fear really takes over, impacting me more than I thought my parents divorce would. But I’ve worked through this challenge, and half of overcoming it is realizing it.”

What person has touched your life the most and why?

“My roommate from college of three years, Noelle. She showed me through her actions what love meant, and that it’s a pursuit of a person no matter the offense. She showed me what forgiveness and grace looks like, and I have never been the same.”