Diligence

This image depicts what I wake up to most mornings. Before the sun has even fully risen, as I open my eyes each morning, there is only this gentle glow coming from beneath my roommate's lofted bed, with books and papers flooding the space. She is overwhelmingly diligent in her studies, and I never know whether to use this as encouragement for myself in my own studies, or to simply stand in awe of her study habits and accept that I will never be that patient or that determined. The lighting in this scenario usually reminds me of knowledge in and of itself --- and how it's often attained and maintained in the quietest hours of the morning, or over the glow of a candle late at night. There is a geometric structure to the composition, even in the midst of the soft light, and I find it interesting how this juxtaposition echoes what learning can, and should, entail.