How I got into Photography, and the lessons I learned on the way

This is kind of a more personal post than I usually write, but it's something that I've wanted to get down on (virtual) paper for a while. Lately, I’ve been reminiscing about how I got to be doing photography as a full-time occupation. My journey to photography was something of a long-winded one, and it wasn't something I considered doing full time until later in life, but my roots in the art started at an early age, though.