I think I’ve spent the last four years trying to figure out who I would be without the influence of my family, the people around me, the media, society…
Like if I grew up on a beach alone, who would I be?
When in reality, that will never be the case
It never is the case.
Yes, I have a soul deep down, and I do know her,
but she will always be represented through the body and life I have today:
Ali, born on Earth in 1998.
I am this body and life and Earth and soul
all at once.
It’s like taking a film picture: my soul is the light shining through the lens, and my body and world are the objects of the photo.
I can’t ever see the light just on its own, but she is what lights up the physical persona and world I was given in this moment.
One cannot exist without the other.
Trying to see what the light looks like on its own is an impossible task.
It’s like I have been trying to create film pics with just light and no world to take a picture of.
Our souls need something to shine out of.
They need something to shine on.
And no matter who or what I take pictures of,
my soul will always be the light that shines it.
I can only see her
through the moments I capture with others
in this world
today.
Ali Walks Around 