Our web and content absence is clear and in these past few months, it's been way too long for an update but here it is.
Our Team:
Bobbie Eller: She received word through the nausea, bumps and bounces in her tummy that she is expecting a second child, a girl! Scarlet. YAY!!! This news has been a kickstart whirlwind of excitement and future planning. Bobbie has also reached a milestone marker in her Instagram account of 10,000 followers! Fans from all over are following her wild makeup DIY tips and collaboration makeup sessions that are so cool and creepy! Check it out: @bobbieeller
Maria Gast: Maria and her fiancé Fel Ian (pronounced: "flying") have been planning their wedding for some time now and just this past July, they did it! The two love birds finally tied the knot and made their goals of becoming man and wife come true. Congratulations!
Stephanie Thomas: Stephanie has been going going going in her endeavors in the fashion world and is moving and shaken with many of her projects. Just recently, Stephanie needed to take a long overdue hiatus and just chill on the beach somewhere to recharge her batteries to get back to revive her spark. Enjoy that time Steph and drink a Mai Tai for all of us!
Kelsie Little: Kelsie has always been a one woman wonder, she has been staying extremely busy with school and finding a place of employment that has taken her to new parts of town. Congrats Kelsie!
And myself.
What had happen was… I personally have gone through a myriad of health and personal issues that I was witnessing myself physically and emotionally deteriorate and fall apart. It's like watching a ship slowly sink. As the primary director for this site and our photo/video projects, the direct impact was to all our DLM fans and loyal supporters.
Metaphorically, WE ALL are captains. Our captain stands in the brig of our mind and looks out the windows of our eyes to navigate in this world. Our captain makes choices and writes in the daily log of assignments to be accomplished. Our captain steers our body ship into daily voyages that is routine, like our everyday jobs and lifestyle. And there are times that the waters become rough with stressful commitments or unexpected life circumstances. Our captain steers us through the waters with caution because listening to the ship bend and shift is also his job to be sure his/her ship can withstand the storm of choices the captain has made or needs to make. My captain did not listen and ignored the warning signs and watched as his ship slowly take on too much water and was close to sinking. Literally. Like drown.
…come to think of it, how many of us tend to do the same thing?
I suffered a hip "pop" that was left undiagnosed properly for too long that led to my body suffering in pain. It was that pain that frequently sent me to the doctor to check it out. After numerous visits with no answers, an orthopedic doctor found the cause. A labral tear, few bone spurs and accumulating arthritis. In mid July, I underwent surgery and had my hip repaired and I am in the process of healing. Phew! Finally!
Along with the physical and deterring pain in the hip, for the last 6 months, I have had to make many personal changes with regards to relationships, reliances. Re-learning to breath and not stress and a serious wake up call in my daily life. It took a very strong and difficult toll on the outlook of my life and boy was I finding myself wound down into the difficult world of anxiety and depression. Coming through on the other side is incredibly relieving and I thank God for the life I have and I want to continue to embrace all the positive aspects of life through giving myself the benefit of the doubt and believe in myself that I am strengthened through faith and hard work to achieve the goals that I set out to accomplish.
PROJECTS
Admittedly, there are projects that all our fans and communities have been waiting to see. New photo shoots, the 2014 Abilities Expo, the Wings For Life World Run, exclusive interviews done with Tamara Mena and Josh Tate from Loveland. An upcoming project film and more. It's a hard toll on personal fulfillment when taking on projects and not completing them. I take them very very seriously and when it does not come full circle for completion, it's a let down.
Getting back on the saddle is the first step to any recovery, whether it's emotional or physical. In my case, I had taken a much needed hiatus to re-focus. The current news is I have been given the opportunity for a very very big intentional trip to show film work that I am currently pressed on! YEAH!
It begins next month in mid September to old mother Russia, where a project group of filmmakers from New York and I will head to a couple different parts of Russia to get together with filmmakers with disabilities. We are getting together to make and discuss film creation and more! Headed up by Jon Alpert of DCTV. I will be most certainly documenting this whole journey to bring it home to share!
Again, thank you for still continuing to believe in DLM and our endeavors to make a difference for those around us and in our community. And remember… make sure your captain is always on watch!
~Andrew