I was kind of bullied into entering the Black & White State Competition. I completely didn’t want to because I’ve seen work that has been entered in before and I did not stand a chance! But I entered anyways, conquer a fear ya know? I jumped and squealed for 10 minutes when I found out that out of 300 entries I was one of the 170 picked to be in the gallery! That was enough for me.
Scott and I headed to the gallery opening and imagine my surprise when Scott got a program and my name was listed as winning and Honorable Mention Award!! I was so stunned and in total disbelief. I mean how could I have been one of the 13 art pieces out of 170 to win an award, ? The whole evening I kept expecting someone to come up to me and say, “Sorry Leslie. We accidentally gave you the ribbon. Here’s a gift card to Burger King as a consolation prize.” But they didn’t. And I’m thrilled!

This picture was taken while I was on the Martin Cove Trek. We were finishing up the last part of walking into camp and a storm was quickly forming in front of us. This little girl had fallen on the trail earlier and scrapped up her face. While her dad held her and comforted her she eventually fell asleep on his shoulder, feeling safe and secure as we walked towards that storm. It was such a humbling moment being able to feel just a glimpse of what those brave souls felt as they stumbled along that trail.