A Taxing Decade

These photographs were shot during my time at Rochester Institute of Technology studying photography/visual media. I created this collection intending to encapsulate the weight of my family's collectively most challenging obstacle life presented to us. I captured these moments throughout the tenth and final year of my Mother's battle against Oligodendroglioma, a rare type of brain tumor that spreads quickly to other areas of the central nervous system. A diagnosis that led her down a formidable road consisting of a myriad of experimental treatments, four brain surgeries, and numerous rounds of chemo and radiation. Despite enduring inordinate pain, her inherent selflessness and amiability prospered each day. Barely blinking when faced with obstacles as domineering as these, I don't remember one day her Motherhood waivered. Her innate ability to sincerely illuminate the world also continued to thrive, as nearly everyone she encountered was left wielding a smile as pure as hers. Gracefully fostering joy and optimism with each act of her tender soul. Lori Lee Noreman, the truest of gems. With this collection, I aim to illustrate the unsolicited weight of the burden we bore as our inevitable futures swiftly became our present. The type of inescapable weight that transformed the very air we breathed into molasses constantly. Pre-emptively experiencing our grief as each day seemed exceedingly difficult, our empathies powerfully working against us. Despite her voice being entrapped within the confines of her own consciousness, we felt her agony. 1/19/61~5/8/14