Capturing Signs From the Universe as an Artist…

I went to NYC this past weekend for pride and spent some time with a big group of friends I don’t get to see often, which was incredibly healing as always. We went to Central Park for the afternoon and my cousin Alex was with me—she’s a videographer and creator, and I’m a photographer, so naturally we started talking about how we need to make more time to create together.

We both talked even before that about hot this is what we were put on this earth to do. Not just burn ourselves out working to survive, but to actually create the stuff we care about. The passion projects. The stories that mean something to us. Yes, we still have to make money, but we realized we’ve been so focused on that part that we’re not doing what actually makes us passionate anymore.

We started shooting in Central Park without any plan or stress, just pure vibes really…

And I ended up getting two shots I’ve honestly been waiting years to get.

Our grandpa passed away about a month ago, and it hit us both harder than we expected. I’ve always said cardinals and blue jays remind me of my grandparents. I was even telling Alex recently about a tattoo idea I plan on getting with both birds flying towards each other in honor of them as we were walking through the park.

20 minutes into the walk we saw two cardinals—a male and a female—right next to us, just bathing in this little stream. I spent some time photographing them put my camera away after and then not even 10 minutes later, a blue jay perched on a branch right in front of us as we were headed out.

I wasn’t going to stop and take a photo. I had already put my camera away, and we were leaving… but something in me said no—you NEED to get a photo of this blue jay. I’ve been waiting forever to get a shot of a cardinal and a blue jay so I could frame it and give it to my grandma as a gift. So I took the photo. And I’m so fucking glad I did.

And the peace that came with it? I still don’t really have words for it. It felt like a quiet, powerful sign from my grandpa—like he was telling me to keep going. To stop stressing over the noise and just create. To trust that this is the path we’re meant to be on.

Your loved ones will send you a sign when you need it. Trust it. Listen to it. And if you’re lucky enough to see it— make sure to capture it.

So here’s your reminder to create more art with your people.