Beautiful Sisters :: Project Molly’s Eyes {Stillwater, MN Portrait Photographer}

Words can’t convey how profound these two sets of amazing sisters are to me.  When I decided to do Project Molly’s Eyes, I just kind of jumped in and never thought through all of the deep details.  At the conclusion of the this shoot, one of the teenaged girls asked me a couple of questions that were obviously very painful for her about how people view her exterior self.  In what felt like a slap, I was right back there with her in my turbulent grade school years.  There were times I was felt so repressed I would make a bee line from one class to another with my hand over my nose and mouth.  How do you convey to a child with those same painful emotions that there is light?  That in time, she’ll rise above.  That if resilient, she will, in a semi-twisted way, be a better human being for it.  That she’s strong enough, pretty enough and remarkable enough to wade through those years and in the end, shine.   I know I can’t put an end to those challenging emotions and years of grade school we all trudge through one way or another, but I also know it would have helped to have been told I wasn’t alone.  In time, I’d shine.  I’m telling these Beautiful Girls and all the others out there, they too will shine.  Stay strong and never hide your face for anyone.

 

Written By: M.G

Our first daughter, now 12, had her lip repaired before we met her at age 3.  When we all, myself, husband and 2 teenage sons, and our then 4 year old daughter traveled back to China, we adopted our youngest.  She was 17 months old and had an open bi-lateral cleft lip and palate.  We were shocked at what we saw.  A twisted-open lip and two baby teeth sticking out sideways from her mouth.
What shocked us all later is that we grew to love that face and adore our sweet baby girl.
The night before her surgery to close the lip, we gathered to pray and then tearfully (all of us) say good bye to that sweet little misshape mouth.
I wish I would have had the forsight to photograph both girls before during and after the surgeries, but I didn’t.  I would love to have them photographed by you now.