Shunkaen and Kobayashi

For the past two weeks, I have been exploring the city of Tokyo. I have seen countless temples, numerous landmarks, eaten a slew of different foods, and wandered through many gardens. But the most memorable aspect of my trip thus far has been my time visiting Shunkaen Bonsai Museum in Edogawa, Tokyo prefecture. It is about an hour’s journey from downtown via public transportation and a short walk from the nearby bus stop. The museum was nestled in the middle of the Edogawa neighborhood. If it weren’t for the various black pines lining the wall up to the entrance, it would have blended in with the rest of the city.

The entrance to Shunkaen.

Walking up to the gardens.

Upon entering, a very large Japanese Black Pine welcomes you. This large specimen was approximately 4 feet wide and 5 feet tall sitting on a wooden planks. Its trunk was a thick mass fashioned in the informal upright style. An arm of dead wood ascends from behind the apex snaking towards the sky. This tree was an astounding 450 years old but has only been trained as a bonsai for a few decades. It was humbling being in the presence of such an ancient creature; I smile at all the wisdom this tree holds deep in its roots.

Here is a pic of this tree.

After paying the underpriced entry fee of 800 yen, I walked around admiring the trees until an apprentice of Kobayashi named Jin greeted me. I just happened to visit the garden while a Japanese television show was at the garden shooting a bit for their program. I guess they loved the fact of a foreigner visiting the gardens since they followed Jin and I closely with cameras and microphones throughout the tour.

Here are some trees and views from the gardens:

Shimpaku growing in a sideways pot. The tree is a cascade but is turned like this to strengthen it.

Huge Japanese Black Pine. Approximately 350 years old.

Japanese Black Pine. This one has a little frog resting in between its bark.

Looking out from the tea room museum.

Jin first showed me a beautiful 5 needle pine estimated about 250 years old. He explained how this tree was collected from the mountains some 30 years ago and has been in training ever since. Jin told me this was one of the most valuable trees in the collection, worth $1 million! Observe the hollowed out trunk and how the live vein coils around it. Beautiful.

Here is another $1 million tree. This one is a Shimpaku. I could just stare at this one forever. The trunk’s movements and intricate positioning of the branches make this a one-of-a-kind tree. The dead wood seems to have no end. It just winds and winds forever. Splendid.

After Jin showed me some of the more valuable trees in the collection, he took me to the museum part of the gardens which acted like a mini-show of some of the garden’s most beautiful trees. He took me into a large tea house whose rooms served as exhibits. The building couldn’t have been more appropriate; elegantly designed and decorated reflecting the sophistication of the art and culture. Tatami mats covered the floors and rice screens lined the walls. Here are some of the trees I viewed:

A myrtle trained in the windswept style. This tree was grown from seed approximately 40 years old.

A classic Japanese Black Pine with wall scroll behind. This tree had a very mossy trunk which reflected its age of 250 years.

A crape myrtle with pretty pink flowers. The blue pot accents the flower color beautifully.

Same tree a little farther away. Notice the simplicity of the display.

A Gardenia. This tree produces fragrant creamy white colored flowers in the spring. This tree is over 100 years old.

A gorgeous green Japanese Maple. This tree has a different look each season with its ever changing foliage.

A suiseki or viewing stone polished by Mother Nature. This one resebles a mountainside rigid like a camel’s back.

Another stunning suiseki. This one looks like a mountainside pierced by a powerful waterfall.

After perusing the collection inside, Jin took me into a house on the side to enjoy some tea and conversation. He showed me books containing Kobayasi’s work and magazines where his collection has been featured. I even showed Jin some of my trees in which he gave constructive feedback for their future development. He then took me to the workshop where I finally met the famous Kobayashi. He was much humbler than I expected and very very nice. He was working on a large fig tree when I walked in. After greeting me, he made his way to a nearby chalkboard where he began writing in kanji. Jin took the chalk from him and began translating what was written.

Kobayashi working on a tree as I entered the workshop.

“Three concepts”, Jin said, “go into the art of bonsai. The first concept is Character which is communicated in one or all three ways: the trunk, the branches, and the roots. These parts of the tree tell a story. They give the tree a personality, a soul so to speak, which makes it unique and interesting like a human. The second concept is Harmony and is very important for the overall aesthetic display of the tree. A bonsai with a breath taking trunk will look unappealing with un-manicured branches. Or a tree with fantastic branch structure will look odd in the wrong pot. This harmony of bonsai features is a direct representation of the harmony one must have with nature to fully appreciate the bonsai. The last concept is Elegance which is rather self-descriptive. No matter what style or species of bonsai, elegancy is the ruling concepts for the design. Without elegancy, it fails to transcend the status of being a tree to being art. All three concepts are vital for a bonsai masterpiece. It is a full understanding and application of these concepts that separate Masters from Hobbyists.” They are the basic rules for designing bonsai I will from this point forward consciously implement into my work.

Once the theory class was done, it was time for the practical portion. Jin brought out a 5 needle pine that was growing in a shallow terra cotta pot. It had an already beautifully twisted trunk but needed some design on its branches to maintain the harmony. Jin pulled out rolls of wire of differing thickness and asked me which grade would be best to bend the top portion of the trunk. I selected the grade that was just thick enough so as to bend the branch but avoid unnecessary “gaudiness” once the tree is wired. Remember, bonsais  should look elegant and beautiful in every stage of the training process. Wiring is a strict discipline pertaining to those rules. Jin proceeded to demonstrating how to properly wire. He said it makes use of all ten fingers and flexibility in the wrists. Similarly to how David Nguy taught wiring during my workshop with him back in Novemeber, Jin showed how one must “walk” the fingers through the wiring process, eliminating any holes in the wire when it is not snug around the brach. Another important thing about wiring as Jin mentioned was the spacing between each twist around a branch must be equal. This is for two reasons: (1) it puts less strain on the branch since the tension is evenly displaced and (2) it just looks good (which I’m sure by now you’ve realized that “looking good” is always on the mind when designing a bonsai).

The tree before we wired. Notice how interesting the trunk is.

As you can see, the tree had many branches to be wired, so we spent a good 20 minutes wiring every branch. Jin would get the wire started and I would wrap it around the branch, making sure to not cross wire, snag leaves, and cut the wire back too short as to leave a little tag for removing it. This is what the tree looked like after being all wired up.

Finally we bent the tree. Jin commented on how the trunk zig zags back and forth and therefore the top part of the trunk which leads to the apex must follow suit. He positioned the branches in a “dip” style where the branch dips towards the ground than bends back up to the sly. He said how in nature, tree branches will bend down during the winter because the snow on the branches weigh it down, then will begin growing up to the sky in spring when the sun is bright and the snow is melting. This explains the roller-coaster-like shape we see in pine specimens. Here is what the tree looks like all wired and bent. Not too shabby.

After the wiring session, which may I remind you was entirely recorded for a television program, the director wanted to interview me as part of the show. So Jin and I sat facing each other with the bonsai we just worked on sitting on a table between us. The director was crouching behind Jin, asking him questions in Japanese that he translated into English. I would answer and Jin would translate it back to the camera. Some of the questions were like “How did you get started into bonsai?” and “How did you find this place?” and “What makes you like it?” My favorite question was “How would you describe Bonsai in two words?” I responded with “Nature’s Art” because it truly is an art gifted to us by Nature. Nature supplies the materials, we supply the spirit, the soul, the characteristics of what bonsai represents to us. It was a very exciting portion of my experience. I have never been interviewed for a television program. I hope I looked good!

This brought me to the end of my day at Shunkaen. It was a remarkable experience, one that will forever be a part of my spirit as I continue to study and practice this amazing art. I don’t know if it’s because I was in Japan or in the presence of such an accomplished bonsai master but I felt a sense of total inspiration and understanding stem from this visit. I will forever question and learn about the mysteries of bonsai but for a few moments I felt clarity in the art. I feel like I can create trees as magnificent as the ones I’ve seen and that it is no longer an unattainable dream. I am excited to get back to the States and work on my trees. This was truly a life changing experience!

Jin and I, Kobayashi’s amazing apprentice.

Kobayashi and I. What an inspirational guy!

Got Kobayashi’s autograph!

A Day at Hozy’s

The other day, I paid a visit to a Phoenix Bonsai Society veteran, Joan McCarter, or more commonly known simply as Hozy. She’s been with the Phoenix Bonsai Society since its inception and has provided mentoring services to club members for decades. She lives in Tempe where she started a business selling bonsai pots to club members and others. Her backyard is truly a spectacle, with hundreds of trees and pots, it’s taken years of collecting and growing to achieve its grandeur.

When you walk into her backyard, you are welcomed by a large desert rose and side pond with two fat goldfish. Various desert species line the pond’s edge, some in decorative pots other in bonsai pots. If there is one thing you should know about Hozy is that she only grows desert trees and she has mastered the art.

A small view of Hozy’s immense collection. The koi pond is the large structure in the back

As you continue walking through her garden, you make your way to her koi pond. This large pond is filled with over a dozen large koi and each is friendlier than the last. She tossed some food into the water and I marveled at how close they came to the waters surface. You could just reach out and pet their slimy heads. As I was watching them swim elegantly through the cool water, I wanted to just jump in there with them to save myself from the 115 degree weather. Her cats enjoy watching the fish but know better than to stick their paws in for a catch.

And now onto some trees…

This Portulacaria was one of the best I’ve seen. Not surprising for a desert grower such as Hozy. It was collected and worked on by bonsai master Dennis Makashima when he visited Phoenix for a club function. Observe the thick trunk and eloquently alternating branches. The nebari on this specimen is interesting as well as its roots knot over each other.

One of my most favorite tree species; Texas Ebony. This was hands down Hozy’s best tree. It was a legacy tree from a deceased member of the club and has been growing strong for over 20 years. The oval pot compliments its round canopy. Although the tree does flower, Hozy chose an unglazed pot that contrasts well with the ever green foliage. Truly a remarkable specimen.

And of course her Bougainvilleas!

Bougainvilleas are the prettiest bonsai, in my opinion, one can grow easily in Arizona. Their leaves are adapted for dry, sunny climates, while their roots store plenty of water during long spells of drought. And plus, they are super easy to grow! Definitely a tree for beginners.

So there you have it folks! My day with Hozy was educational, eye opening, and overall fun. If you are ever in the Phoenix area, I encourage you to stop by. Hozy is great and will get you started with a good tree. Or stop by if you’re looking for that special pot. She has hundreds to choose from.

Bonsai Styling 101 with David Nguy

A few weeks ago, I shared an incredible experience with some of the members of the Phoenix Bonsai Society. David Nguy, renown bonsai master and sensei, came from his home in southern California to instruct us on the styling principles of bonsai.

Everyone was to bring their personal tree for David to work on. At first I felt out of place. Almost everyone brought in a variety of juniper or other conifer while I chose a less traditional plant. I brought in a Texas Ebony (Ebenopsis Ebona), a North American native that thrives in the desert climate (More Info Here). My luck with non-native species has been horrible in the Phoenix climate. I needed something that could live comfortably through the summer. Here are some pictures of when I first brought it home:

As you can see, the leaves were starting to die due to change of season, but the tree was still very healthy. I chose it due to the great potential it possessed in that beautiful trunk. The trunk is the most important aspect of the individual tree itself because it is the artistic backbone of everything else. When you gaze upon a bonsai the first thing the eye is drawn to is the trunk. It needs to take the form of how a tree would naturally be growing in nature while at the same time conveying your tree’s personality.

This ebony had a knotted trunk that resembled a tree growing on or between rocks.

The first thing you do before any styling is to decide where the front of the tree lies. Like many pieces of fine art, the artist intends the viewer to have a fixed perspective of the piece. The same holds true for the art of bonsai. Deciding where the front of your tree determines how the branches and pot will be arranged. You are then not mindlessly triming branches but rather methodically training them to fulfill a perspective you are trying to set in nature. David decided the front should be where the tree trunk is protruding up at the 5:00 position. This curve is soft but sturdy as the eye follows the trunk from the base to the apex.

The apex of the tree is the top most point and second most important attribute. It’s the end of your tree or where the eye will stop as it moves up the trunk. Here, after David lopped off a good number of unnecessary branches, he found the most powerful apex of the tree:

The apex’s job is to simply balance out the trunk as the tree comes to an end. There is only one apex in a bonsai, and it could be either living or dead wood. Because the trunk of this ebony is so dominant on one side, the apex must swing the opposite side of the trunk before coming back around. You can see David explaining this concept and showing how the apex will go once some wire is applied.

David told me how the branches will be arranged so it was up to me and his assistant to wire the tree. Wiring is technical work and especially challenging when your tree is covered in thorns. We spent a good half hour to 45 minutes just removing every thorn we could find because of how painful it would make the wiring process.

There are a few rules one must follow when wiring a bonsai:

1. Depending on which direction you want to turn the branches determines which angle you should wire from. The wire must wrap around the branch where the pressure of turn is most strong. For example, a branch that needs to be bent downward must have the wire come from the top. If you are bending to the right, the wire must come from the left of the branch. Here is a little picture that briefly outlines this practice:

The arrows point to the direction the branch will turn. Notice the direction the wire is coming from.

 

2. Never cross wires. This is where a mathematical rather than artistic mind comes into play in bonsai. To properly wire a branch using multiple wires, all the wires must fall in line with each other without any crossing. You can see this can get difficult when you have a bunch of branches to bend in different directions and need to follow the rule #1 of proper wire placement. The reason you never cross wire is because it will make your job a living hell when you need to remove the wire and simply because it looks unclean. Bonsai is all about appearance at every step of the growing process.

3. Decide how you want your branches positioned before applying wire. If you put wire on your tree and start bending it multiple times until you find the “right” spot, don’t. When you bend a branch you are breaking the microscopic fibers of the branch, similar to how weight training breaks muscle fibers. Over time the branch cells heal the damaged tissues, solidifying the tree’s shape. If you bend it here and there over and over, you are just damaging the branch more and more which can lead to death to the branch. Yes, there is a thing called “working your tree to death” and you can just imply exactly what that means.

4. When applying wire, there needs to be a spot where you anchor the one end so it doesn’t move as you wrap the wire around the branch. Anchoring the wire around the trunk should be your last resort. Remember how bonsai is all about appearance at all stages of the growing process? Well, wire on trunk is unappealing and should be avoided. The best way to anchor a wire is to secure the one end to a nearby branch, briefly passing through the trunk, and then wiring up the next branch. Here is an image of what I am talking about:

You can see how there are only two pieces of wire but you can wire four branches with it, having both ends of the wire being the anchor for each other. David Nguy always says to “walk” the wire up a branch, never “jump” as this ensures a tight fight on the branch and avoids unwanted spaces that weaken the wire strength. He is referring to your thumbs and how the technique a true master has acquired. But of course with everything, this requires a lot of practice.

David’s assistant for the workshop and one of three apprentices he instructs in California, helped me with the wiring process. David’s initial trimming left what it seemed like an easy wiring job but it ended up taking us almost a full hour to get every branch completely wired properly. David finally came back around and worked like a true bonsai master, decisively placing each branch in relation to the front. When placing branches, you want to sculpt them in the shape of many small triangles, as is the underlying principle of asymmetric balance. Here is a little snip of him working my tree:

After all the work was complete, here are the results. It has come a long way since its days as nursery stock but still years from being finished. In fact, it will never be finished as it is a continuously growing piece of art. But for now, until spring, I will keep it in the large nursery pot and wait for the new leaves to sprout.

Of course I had to take my picture with him!

The Beginner’s Guide to Bonsai and Horticulture

This past week, I added a new tree to my collection; a juniper procumbens nana. This particular species was the first bonsai I ever purchased and the one species I kill most often!

My new juniper. Lots of trimming and styling to be done.

Its underside. Check out how twisted the branches are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But with every juniper I lose, I gain some new knowledge. Bonsai is half art and half science. You can be the best at styling a tree, but if you can’t keep the dang thing alive, you have nothing to show for. So here is a quick guide on the basic horticultural knowledge you’ll need to know when embarking on this wonderful hobby.

Never grow bonsai inside

Imagine one day you woke up, found your house in ruins, and was forced to camp outside for a few months until you found a new place. I’m guessing you wouldn’t be a whole lot happy, and if you’ve never camped a day in your life, not a whole lot healthy afterwards. This is exactly how your tree feels when you expect it to thrive and grow inside your home. Trees evolved over millions of years to adapt to the outdoor conditions, and it is not equipped for your air conditioned, dimly lit living room, no matter how cozy or well decorated it may be. Trees need the air circulation, lighting, and humidity levels not easily replicated in indoor environments. These conditions ensure the health of your tree so that it is strong against things like diseases and infestations. And besides, plants and dirt attract those pesky gnats and other bugs. So do your tree and yourself a favor, and keep them outside!

Watch your water

Now when it comes to watering, I found that this is a path you must travel alone. Yes, you can read how often you should water your trees in a book or online, but your growing medium, climate, season, pot sizes, and species are all factors in how often you should water. Deciduous trees like elms, maples, and metasequoias love water and are hard to over water. Conifers and desert varieties like junipers, ebonies, and bougainvilleas are more finicky with water and more tolerable to droughts. If you live in an arid climate like Arizona or Southern California, watering should be done more often, about once to every other day in the winter and at least once or twice a day in the summer. Humid and rainy climates like Pennsylvania and Washington during spring and autumn do not demand heavy watering like that of dry climates, and often the weather itself will keep your trees satiated. Your growing medium plays a huge role in your water regime, since inorganic material like pumice and scoria drain very quickly and require more frequent waterings than organic material like cactus soil or peat which retain a lot more moisture. Shallower pots or rock slabs like those used for forest plantings or saikeis demand more frequent watering than deep pots like those used for cascades. A good rule of thumb is to only water when the soil is medium to dry for most plants and if your leaves are wilting, you’re not watering enough, and if your leaves are yellowing, you’re watering too much. But it’s really trial and error with every plant, especially new species you’re not familiar with. Just whatever you do DO NOT leave your plants sitting in a pool of water. This will rot the roots and ultimately kill your tree. When watering, water thoroughly. This means either submerging your potted tree in a bucket of water until all the air bubbles cease to rise or giving it a generous shower with the hose, maybe about a minute or two. Let your pots drain completely.

Sunshine. Friend or Foe?

Lighting conditions for your tree is again a trial and error thing but your tree will quickly tell you if it’s liking or disliking its location. If you live in Arizona, like me, you are sure to notice that direct sun for us is a completely different thing than direct sun in the rest of the country. Desert and juniper trees like One Seed junipers and California junipers love sunshine, and will thrive in the full Arizona sun. Deciduous trees are quick to burn in the leaves when too much sun is present which is a good sign to watch out for. Know what spots in your yard are the sunniest and dimmest. Shade cloth is an excellent way to control the sunnier sides of your yard, and comes in different grades such as 30% and 50%. Sunlight also notifies your trees of the season change which tells some species to begin their dormancy period. This is extremely crucial as trees need the dormancy period in order to grow vigorously in the spring. Providing artificial light or keeping them indoors will mess up the trees natural biological clock. So always stay mindful of the amount of direct light and shade your trees are experiencing, as too much or too little will make your trees unhealthy.

Soil and Fertilizer

Soils by far are the most complicated subject when growing bonsai. Natural soil is a huge mixture off different minerals and nutrients, and replicating this in a pot can be very challenging. Not to mention soil pH which is the level of acidity or alkalinity of the soil which dictates how well your tree absorbs macro and micro nutrients. First off, soils come in two flavors: organic and inorganic. Organic soil is composed of dead living matter and by products of living things. They are your peats, barks, potting soil, wood chips, and clays. Inorganic soil is composed of minerals and by products of the unliving earth such as scoria (lava rock), pumice, chicken grit, and gravel. Akadama, which is little pieces of fired clay used as medium, can be classified as both inorganic and organic depending on how you define organic. I consider it organic but that’s just me. The benefits of organic soil is that it retains much more water, much more nutrients, and easily allows the beneficial soil fungus mycorrhiza to develop. Mycorrhiza clings to the plants roots, taking carbohyrdtaes and sugars from the plant while providing the plant with more surface area for water and root absorption. It’s a symbiotic relationship but I digress. Inorganic soil has excellent drainage while retaining water which is extremely critical for root health. I’ve found that a balance between these two materials is crucial for a healthy tree. I typically use organic material in large non-bonsai grow pots if I want a tree’s trunk to thicken or if I want the tree to grow more stems and leaves. I use inorganic in my bonsai pots because of the restricted space for root growth and need for proper drainage. Just keep in mind, the more inorganic your soil blend is, the more you will need to water and fertilize.

A few soil blends you might want to try out are:

• 1/3 pumice, 1/3 scoria, 1/3 akadama (credit Ryan Neil)
• 3/4 scoria, 1/4 pumice (credit Frank Harris)
• 1/2 cactus soil, 1/4 pumice, 1/4 chicken grit (credit Joan McCarther)
• 1/4 orchid bark, 1/2 scoria, 1/4 pumice
• 1/4 chicken grit, 1/4 pumice, 1/4 scoria, 1/4 peat moss (more acidic blend)

Fertilizing is necessary for supplying your tree with all of the vital nutrients it needs for life. The nutrients plants eat come in two flavors: macro and micro. The macronutrients are Nitrogen. Phosphorus, and Potassium or N-P-K. The plant uses all three nutrients in all of of its biological processes but here are where each specific nutrient is used most in:

• Nitrogen- leaf and shoot development
• Phosphorus- root development and health
• Potassium- Fruit and flower synthesis

Nutrient Deficiencies. Compliments of Cornell University.

The micro nutrients are less complex molecules that the plant uses and uses in smaller quantities. Although not as vital as the macro nutrients, the micro nutrients help keep the plant functioning smoothly, much like lubricating oil in a car engine. I am not going to get into what these nutrients do individually because the amount of each that a plant uses depends on the species. They include:

• Iron
• Copper
• Boron
• Zinc
• Manganese
• Molybdenum
• Chlorine

Just like soil, fertilizer is either organic or inorganic. The difference is in how quickly a plant absorbs them into their system. Inorganics are formulated in labs and include well known brands like Bayer and MiracleGro. They absorb the fastest into a plants systems because they dissolve in the water you use to water the tree and get sucked up like a sponge into the roots. The pro of inorganic is that they are a quick fix if your tree is in dire need of nutrients because they absorb so quickly. The con is that they can easily burn your trees roots which can end up killing the poor thing. If you are going to use inorganic, then I recommend using it at half strength than suggested on the box. Organic fertilizer, like fish oil and cotton seed, release slowly into the soil and take much longer for the tree to absorb and use. The con is in the speed but the pro is in the fact that you really can’t overdo it with organic fertilizer unless you plant the tree in entirely organic fertilizer. The best time to fertilzer is typically after a rain storm, but if you are in a humid climate, any time would do.

The best time to fertilize is heavy in the spring, a little less heavy in the summer, a whole lot less heavy in the autumn, and little to none in the winter. If you live in Arizona or California, fertilizing during the winter in small amounts is ideal because although the tree is semi dormant, the roots are still active.

Here are some fertilizer recipes you can use with all trees. They each have a balanced N-P-K number

• 1/3 cotton seed meal, 1/3 blood meal, 1/3 bone meal
• 1/3 cotton seed meal, 1/3 bone meal, 1/3 seaweed extract
• 1/5 cotton seed meal, 1/5 blood meal, 1/5 bone meal, 1/5 fish emulsion, 1/5 rape seed meal

Well that just about covers all the basic things you need to know when starting off this amazing hobby of bonsai. For those who are more experienced, comment some of your soil and fertilizer recipes for me to post. Have a lovely day and thanks for reading!

Welcome to my World

May I be the first to welcome and thank you for reading my very first blog post! I have been wanting to start a blog for a while but just didn’t know what to talk about. So I decided to just write about my passions. Bonsai trees, love, marketing, nature, travel, life, and spirituality. But today I am going to share with you the man who lit a fire under my butt, Mr. Mark Schaefer.

Last night, I heard one of the most influential and eye opening mini-speeches in my entire life. Thanks to Mark, social media guru and marketing shaman, I realized a lot deeper what social media is all about. As an aspiring marketer and soon to be graduate of Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business, I have a dirty little secret: I hate social media! Before last night, all social media to me was like one of those bullshit elections you did in middle school for class president…just one huge popularity contest. Now popularity is cool and all when you know how to command it, but sucks if, you’re like me, and strive to be the most talked about thing out there but fall flat on your face in the process. I hated social media because it was a great deal of time wasting and nothing else. Who cares about what the grocery store cashier said about your mom’s outfit or how hung over you are after getting plastered at karaoke? But after last night that all changed. It’s not about the popularity, or the number of pictures posted, or the stupid statuses that should better have been left unsaid. It’s all about the connections we make with people from all over the world that couldn’t have been possible only a few years ago. It’s about the meaningful content that people not only want to read but want to share with those they feel connected with from across the planet. It’s about being a part of an online community of collaborators, brainstormers, innovators, and artists. So with that being said, I am doing my part in adding content to the vast world of social media and leaving my unique mark the world should know.

So welcome to my world! I hope you enjoy the wisdom and experiences I talk about and my transformation into the man I desire to be!