It’s not very often you get a chance to tell the story of the ones you love. Kim Doerksen is a dear friend and I’ve been a big fan since the day we met working at a shoe store. She is kind, fun, collaborate, and down to get into creative projects. Oh and she loves running. She won’t be the one to tell you this, but she’s fast.

I started photographing Kim not long after she gave birth. Over the past five and a half months I’ve watched her find her way back to running, and back to herself, one day at a time.

But of course, there’s a whole side of this people don’t really see. The weight of it, the rebuilding, the doubt, how much quiet resilience it takes to come back to sport post-partum. It’s not linear. It’s not easy. A lot of it goes unseen. And still, she showed up. Again and again.

It feels different photographing someone you love in a season like this. Being in front of a camera isn’t easy, especially now, and she let me in anyway.

Here are a few moments I was lucky enough to catch along the way: her pregnancy, her first run, and her first race back. Read more of her words about her first race back here.

I look forward to adding many more firsts to this story along the way.