Beatrice

makes me laugh like no one on Earth. She could read an instruction manual, and it would be hilarious. Her inflections, accents, expressions, and most importantly, comedic pauses are the very bones of Comedy. She embodies the qualities of the Silent Movie Era; beneath the surface, there's an aching pain.

She is living without her husband for the first time in 30 years; Shawn passed away last March. They had just "figured it out" and "were all set to have some fun." But, life, as it does, had other plans. She knitted a “Widows shroud" that I wanted to photograph her in, but it was 85 degrees the day we shot; nature had other plans, as it does.

My wife's closest friends, like Beatrice, become my cousins. That's what happens when you move far from home. You need to create an inner circle; you start with the one you love and then learn to love the people they love—trust who they trust.

"A real conversation always contains an invitation. You are inviting another person to reveal herself or himself to you, to tell you who they are or what they want."

She doesn't want to "become a tired and bitter old woman." Day by day, moment by moment, breath by breath, wink by wink, she works at that. It's important to her that she "captures all stages of life" She posed for nudes when she was 50. As friends, we bear witness to all of the stages and seasons within a life. Allow them inside to see what is hidden and reveal what is buried. Beatrice, by all definitions, is a #portraitofafriend #davidwhyte