As I said in this post, I moved back to Arizona to help my mom. She has a illness that we believe is Parkinson’s Disease. The neurologist has been putting her through a bunch of tests and scans. So far everything has come back normal for her age. She believes that there is something is there, but doesn’t know what it is yet.

I’ve been reading more and more on the symptoms and signs. Like when they start presenting themselves and how they progress. One thing I’ve learned is that it can take more than 5 years to fully diagnose. It has been about 3-3 1/2 years since the signs first started showing. So we may have a while to actually find out. Although the neurologist does want to have a biopsy done. The submandibular gland needle biopsies can identify Lewy type alpha-synucleinopathy in people with Parkinson’s disease of less than five years’ duration. Now I don’t know what all that means just yet. But I do know that it is going to get worse before it gets better. Since I am the only offspring she has that is capable of taking care of her, I will have to face some hard choices in the next few years.

One of the ways I am preparing for this future is I am looking at rebranding myself, my photography, and in some part this website and my Instagram. I have always looked at my photography as a way of relaxing and fun. I dabbled in doing it for money, but was never comfortable with the stiffness of weddings so I never pushed myself. I love doing casual shoots whether it is animals, nature, or social events.

One day while scrolling through Instagram, I stumbled across an ad about Brand Photography. So I started reading about it, and the more I read the more the gears in my creative brain started turning.

What that creative brain of mine was saying was this sounds like the type of photography I need to be doing. So I am starting with branding myself with a goal to be able to exceed my current salary within the next 3 years. I know it is going to be hard work with my current work, helping mom, and now adding another iron into the fire.. But I can do it, I am strong, stubborn, and determined to make it work.

What is your 3 year goal? We can encourage each other.