I’ve taken a while to write this post.
I’m not quite sure how to express my feelings without sounding all sappy and tear-jerky. So I am writing in a fairly matter-of-fact way about something that makes me cry every time I think about it.
This is Peter.
No, he’s not a woman. He’s my hairdresser, and has been for nearly 20 years now. His children and my children are about the same age. A little while back he had a serious health scare that landed him in hospital, and left his wife at home caring for four children AND running a beauty therapy business of her own. Peter nearly died. More than once. It was frightening. I can’t imagine what kinds of thoughts must have been running through his children’s heads when they had a quiet moment or two….
Peter worked bloody hard to recover. He’s back at work now, but it has been a painfully long and tedious journey for him, and also for his wife Caroline.
Peter is… well… outgoing, to say the least! Caroline is a little more reserved. And, as the one who was unwell, Peter received lots of love and support from his clients, I’m sure. But I really felt for Caroline.
What an amazingly strong and capable woman she is! She has had one of the toughest years imaginable, and she kept everything together with such grace. I wanted to find a way to show support for her. In all the years I have been a client of Peter’s we’ve talked a lot about a lot of things (as you do with your hairdresser!), but I had never really shown him any of my work. He’s quite well-known in the world of hairdressing, and is always working with models and photographers, and I had always been a little shy about showing my work to him. The events of the past year or so prompted me to take a risk and offer Caroline a couture portrait session.
Here’s the result.
It was an honour and a privilege to be able to photograph this couple. I hope they cherish each other, their children, even the very air they breathe more and more each day. Thank you Peter and Caroline for allowing me to spend a day photographing you.
You can find Peter and Caroline at Pure Hair Pure Body in Castle Hill. I can highly recommend their salon. I’ve always meant to ask about that logo, though…. Perhaps they use it like an inkblot test and leave it to each client to decide….
Loads of love,
Jen.