A few days ago, I was working as an ER doc in Dallas, Texas. A few days from now, I‘ll be back in rural France exploring and photographing the Hidden World of World War I. I’m often asked, “What’s the connection between doctor, artist and explorer?” Here’s the answer, as I see it.

In the emergency room, I form an intimate bond with complete strangers almost instantaneously. The patient may be rich or poor, black or white, conservative or liberal, gay or straight, religious or agnostic, educated or uneducated, American or not… it doesn’t matter. It’s an immediate human connection, a bond of trust – a sacred duty.

As a medical doctor specializing in emergency medicine, I have the privilege of guiding patients and their families on a journey through darkness to light, towards hope. It’s a journey that begins with helping a patient see his or her options clearly. Until a patient sees the potential danger that‘s staring them in the face, they may not consent to treatment.

We’re all often in denial about imminent danger. But once we see and confront this danger, we find our strength and can chart a course around risk to safety. Hope begins with seeing. Hope is a journey.

Whether at the bedside guiding a patient on a journey from darkness to light towards hope or exploring and photographing a frontier that reveals imminent risks to our civilization and the very core of our inner life and conscience, it is always a journey that begins with seeing and it’s always a journey about hope. Please join me on this journey to explore the origins of the modern world and discover the Hidden World of WWI.