As I record this, we are in the midst of a global health crisis.

It's touching all of our lives.

And though the event is giving rise to a lot of anxiety and fear,

it also serves to remind us how connected and reliant we are on each other.

Though I've never experienced anything like this in my lifetime, I think about other moments

in my life that left me feeling sad, fearful, anxious, and even angry.

During such times, I was tempted to allow those feelings

to overwhelm me and convince me that there were more reasons to be fearful than to be hopeful.

This collective fear and anxiety that we're feeling of what the future may bring in the coming

days, weeks, and

months can and does bring up the worst in some people. They believe in only the worst of

outcomes, which helps them to justify their choices and their behavior. I choose to believe

that like many difficult and challenging moments in human history, we

will move through and pass this.

It may not be free of pain, sorrow, and grief, but we can look forward to days that will

again be filled with love, joy, and compassion. But rather than wait for that day, I want to see

today as an opportunity to be grateful for what I do have and to reach out to people I love

and am concerned about, to just check in and see that they're okay. It's important because when I'm feeling such fear and

insecurity, I need to be reminded that I'm not alone in these feelings. And when I admit as much,

I can be helpful to someone else. I never need to be alone during such dark times, and neither should you.

As you'll hear in this episode with Ben Smith, who is the host and producer of a small voice

photography podcast, we share a lot in common beyond our love for photography and podcasting.

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