By the photographer, Tim Dodd - Do you know my friend Taylor Morris?:
Being from Iowa, it’s only natural at some point in your life that you’ll end up meeting someone in a corn field. All kidding aside, this is exactly how I met one of my best friends, Taylor Morris. In the summer of 2003, I was randomly assigned by my detasseling superior to be the leader of a row with a bunch of 14 year old “kids.” Being 18 myself, I was disappointed to be separated from friends my age. This tiny moment in time changed my life forever.
Our friendship sparked immediately and from that day on, I spent almost every day with Taylor and his friends working on cars, motorcycles and having all sorts of dangerous adventures. He and his group of tight knit friends kept the boy in me alive. At the time, I was self conscious about hanging out with such young guys, but we simply had the best time, so I quickly got over it. They still knew how to be adventurous, live to the fullest and sometimes be tastefully mischievous.
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On May 3, 2012, Taylor stepped on an IED. When the news hit our hometown of Cedar Falls, Iowa, our community dropped to their knees. The damage Taylor sustained was extremely severe. The explosion blew off his legs, his left arm and his right hand. After receiving immediate medical attention in Afghanistan, he transferred to a hospital in Germany, and May 6th was taken to Walter Reed Medical Academy in Washington DC to begin the long rehabilitation process.
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She even challenges him constantly in the smallest ways. While she was laying in Taylor’s bed, Taylor asked if she wanted ice cream. Without hesitation she purposefully requested, “Sure, pass it down.” You could tell by the little smirk on her face that she was giving him a challenge and forcing him to use his manners. This tiny challenge, something that would be so easy for you or me, is a much bigger ordeal for Taylor. Most of us would feel sorry for Taylor and get up and serve ourselves, but she knows these challenges will help him regain his independence. Taylor has never ever backed down from a challenge and this attitude still lives on with him. She doesn’t baby Taylor because she fully knows Taylor isn’t a baby, he’s a full grown, incredibly strong man who is on a long, grueling path toward normalcy.
That's cool. People accepting what has happened and squeezing every moment for whatever happiness can be extracted. Take the little that you know and do the best you can.
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