I know we’ve had some challenges to weather in 2020 and even in the first month of 2021, but the comments from Danette Long, the next featured lady in my You’re Enough campaign, made me reflect on how great life is.

When asked what events have shaped her life, Danette said she’s had “a lot of life lived.” That’s wonderful to hear. And I’m sure many of us feel the same way. Sometimes life is amazing, and sometimes it can be challenging, but it all adds up to a lot of experiences and memories that make us who we are.

Originally from northwestern Pennsylvania, she was raised with lots of love, but not much money, and she learned that beauty comes from the inside. Like many of us, Danette has switched jobs, made personal and professional mistakes, and continues to learn what works for her and her family. She said she has found friends and a support group who know and appreciate her.

Her most powerful moments were when she had her daughter and when she decided to leave her jobs for a higher-paying position elsewhere.

“I am showing my daughter that you can be a working mom, have the house, the husband, the things, but still be present and find joy in the everyday things that we do,” she said.

Danette loves that she can carry on a conversation with pretty much anyone she meets. I love her refreshing take on what constitutes beauty.

“Everyone is beautiful,” she said. “It may not be that we all look like supermodels, but a smile, a hug, a conversation with someone will help to show that beauty.”

For Danette, having beautiful photos of herself gives her some much-needed perspective.

“I see myself as I was at 25,” she said. “But then I see candid photos after we have just woke for the day or had a great laugh after dinner, and I see that time and experiences have begun to take their toll.”

Danette also shared for our campaign what she would do if she felt she couldn’t fail.

“I would try to rekindle the young love between my spouse and myself,” she said. “Life happens, and we love each other, but it would make me so happy to have that young, invincible feeling of new love – all while knowing the things that we’ve built in our relationship together: strength, security, love.”

I hope Danette’s photos from her session help her with that goal. Sometimes, that old flame can be reignited by bringing out your playful side or doing things out of the ordinary, like our photo session with full make-up and hair services.

Please give me a call if you’re interested in booking a session of your own to break out of a rut in your life or to shake things up a bit. In the meantime, I have several more women to feature soon in our You’re Enough campaign, and I hope their stories bring some joy to your day.

All my best,

Suvi