I was born with hydrocephalus, “water on the brain,” due to an arachnoid cyst. I was shunted at a month old, with many revisions, and I had my first seizure at three years of age. After several medications and increasing seizures, I had brain resection at 15, which (knock on wood) has stopped my seizures. During surgery, the optical nerve had to be cut on the right side, affecting my eyesight, and causing blindness on the left side of each of my eyes. I am still on medication and probably will be for the rest of my life. 

I am very active; I like the outdoors, including biking, fishing, and hiking. Since I could not drive until I was twenty, I noticed special sights in nature that I wanted to keep for memories, so I took pictures, mostly on my phone, to share with my family and friends.