This bad photo could be my favorite photo ever

This bad photo could be my favorite photo ever
It's terribly grainy and not as well composed as I'd like but this photo taken two days ago speaks to me more than just about any other. Rocco Moretto is a WWII Vet that I've known for years from my frequent shoots of the Veterans on Veteran's Day. When Lockheed Martin approached me to shoot their new ad campaign featuring Veterans, Rocco (or Rocky as we all call him) was one of my first submissions for casting. We began shooting the campaign several weeks ago and Rocky and I got to know each other even better. I adore him and we speak quite often if only for me to hear his voice and thank him again for being a new hero in my world. Rocky was in Company C comprised of 220 soldiers that landed on Omaha Beach in Normandy on D Day. Of those 220, only 2 made it to the Czech border for VE Day. Rocky called me a week or so ago to tell me that his VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) Post in Queens was being renamed in his honor and would I be his guest. I gave Rocky a large print from our recent shoot (and also one for his post) and he cried. Which made me cry. And then I hugged this 90+ year old man and thought of all the unsung heroes living amongst us.
I took in the event and watched as an aging hero was celebrated. This particular moment had a truly incredible singer recreating a USO show (for one) and I can't look at it without smiling and getting kinda mushy because I have a true hero in my life and he is as humble and gracious and magnificent as I could imagine (and then some).
So here's a bad photo that could be one of my greatest photos ever.

Another day, another life changing smile.

Was preparing for a bear of a day and feeling a bit overwhelmed when I literally ran into this happy fellow with the totally infectious smile. He was walking around lower Manhattan busy looking up at all the buildings and taking in the sights and sounds (that most of us take for granted) with the biggest grin. He apologized and I said "Why? your smile just turned my day around." Turns out Kwame has been here for all of three days after arriving from Ghana. He was so happy to be here and couldn't wait to start work tomorrow for his uncle with whom he is staying with the goal of bringing the rest of his family over. 
He said "They will not believe how wonderful it is here and how happy they will be"
I said "so c'mon, let's show them."

Click.

And remember (because it really does need repeating): The bigger the smile you give, the bigger the smile you get.

Perfectly poised Peacock with plumage proudly pointed posing

So here's what you do: find a beautiful background with lots of color and plop yourself down on the ground hoping that an equally beautiful and colorful bird parades along. If you dream enough, one will eventually come true. 

And then if you're really lucky, the perfectly pedigreed peacock will want to be your pet.