As I pawed through the racks at Lane Bryant looking for something to wear for my photoshoot, I dreaded trying on clothes because I didn’t want to know what size I had become. I could wait no longer. It had to be done. To create a great image, you must be vulnerable and able to open yourself up to something you would have never tried before. This is the case with my white jacket. I never wear white, but this jacket spoke to me. I thought it would look clean and uncluttered for one of my branding images. I tried it on over my Led Zeppelin t-shirt, and it felt right. I grabbed a sleeveless shell blouse to go with it.

My mentor, Cat Ford-Coates, captured “the me” I wanted to show the world. She chose this outfit (from the closet I drug into her studio). She added the necklace from her own collection. I love this image. It’s confident, strong and makes me feel good about myself. I’m trying to live up to the image that Cat created. The person I have always wanted to be is there, it’s just I’ve never seen a photograph of her. But there she is, captured in a white jacket with hair blowing back. Everything I’ve ever wanted is possible. And it was there all the time.

We get stuck believing the same old lies about ourselves. We hear the limits other people put on us when we try to take a step forward. But it’s not my truth anymore. My truth is I’m capable of doing what the F___ I want. Yes. You can blame other people for not seeing your true self, but in the end it’s you that must see who you really are. You must believe your own eyes.

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