It's as Clear as Black and White

Bumper stick on the lid of a teenager's laptop computer sitting in a local coffee shop:

"Remember who you always wanted to be."

I liked the straightforward simplicity of the sticker. Though, I doubt the young man behind the computer sucking down an endless stream of overpriced IBM's and surfing a variety of social networks, simultaneously, had little understanding for its impact. Or, the profound nature of those words as we move through our lives.

I came across this photo recently. That's me with the six-shooter and toddler body armour to fend of the Michigan winter. I'm holding my grandfather, Alberico "Al" Sforza's hand. He's holding my brother Dan Sforza. And my father, Frank Sforza, is in the background shooting home movies. I had the photo in a journal following a church meeting where we were asked to bring a photo of ourselves as babies. As I flipped through my journal today it served the purpose of reminding me of my life. My life so far that is.

I've known since I was 15-years-old that I wanted to be a photographer. And occasionally I remind myself to ask the question, "Am I who I always wanted to be?" Sometimes it goes much deeper than simply fulfilling my teenage dream of being a photographer. But today that's the question I asked myself. And the answer would be yes. And I suppose I sold the caffeinated teen short. I'm sure he can understand the statement. I did at 15. And I hope he's on the road to becoming the person he wants to be.