Some stories pull at your heart strings when you least expect it. Karissa reached out because she wanted photographs of her and her best friend — Young Kaiser had been diagnosed with a rare illness and his future was uncertain. She wanted photographs to hold onto, no matter what happened next.

We met in Saratoga Springs on a warm August afternoon and Kaiser was absolutely everywhere — running, exploring, still so very much himself. Karissa was a little flustered keeping up with him and laughing the whole time, and in between all of that beautiful chaos, there were these quiet moments where he would come back to her and just be still. The way he looked at her said everything.