Christmas came a couple of days early this year in the form of an e-mail:
–“Dear Mr. O’Mara,
I graduated from Berry College in 2007. … I found your website and recognized your name and work immediately because I’ve seen it so often in the Berry quarterly magazine. I’m so glad I saw your site because I’ve always been a big fan of your work since I first saw the magazine. You capture Berry College so beautifully and now that I’ve graduated I enjoy your photos even more. I hope Berry will continue to use your work for years to come. I know this is really random, but I just wanted to let you know. Everybody enjoys fan mail, right? Keep up the great work and thank you for sharing it. Merry Christmas too!
Sincerely,
Rachel M”—
It’s humbling to get such a note. Affirmation by your audience is rare. There is not a category of CASE award that could equal what this simple note means to me.