(One of those rare occasions when I don't use one of my own photographs for an entry. The photographer is unknown. I use the shot based on family ownership of the neg.)
I have often referenced that my parents were instrumental in passing on their love of travel and adventure. This is an illustration of that. My father, an officer in the Navy, was very much an explorer and took advantage of his military career to travel around the world and experience a multitude of things.
When I was but a very small boy the family moved to Yokosuka, Japan for a year or so. Even at a young age the experience taught me the value of understanding other cultures and honoring them. It gave me a sense of exploration that while visiting other peoples and places might be at-times inconvenient or uncomfortable, the rewards far outweighed any difficulties I might endure.
The world was a place to be explored and experienced, not feared or reviled.
My sisters are engaged in the very bittersweet action of taking down my parent's home. Going through possessions, making sure the meaningful items are passed down and treated with respect.
Family photographs are among the most treasured possessions in any household, and when my older sister forwarded this photo of my father standing triumphantly atop Mount Fuji in the pre-dawn light, I knew I had to share the image as an example of what I hold so dearly: the desire to explore.
A quote of mine, which I have shared before, is "What intrigues me most are those things in the distance, on the horizon. That is where I want to go; what I want to see next."
It keeps us moving forward.
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| James Barber atop Fujiyama waiting for sunrise |
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