I've always heard the phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words", but I never understood the true meaning of what this meant. Yes, you can physically describe what's in a picture in a thousand words.

However, seeing a certain photo today made me realize that a picture really is worth a thousand words.
I found this photo off my friend Josh who was studying with me while I spent a semester abroad in New Zealand.

But there isn't anything spectacular about this photo. It's just a photo of hill, nothing special right? Well you're wrong because this photo and this hill mean so much to me.

This hill was right by the apartment I lived when I attended uni there. Me and my ex-boyfriend would always walk down here. We'd go to town and go eat at Satay Kingdom or Burger Fuel. It was a means for us to enjoy spending time with each other. We'd walk down talking to each other and we never came here without the other. We'd walk in the morning, afternoon, night, and even when it was raining. We slowly got to know each other more and more and somehow ended up loving each other more everyday.

This was also the hill that I walked with a lot of my friends. We'd go down and grab something to eat when the weather was nice. We'd spend time with each other and just be happy that we're able to be studying abroad here and have a close connection with people we just met. This was the way we'd go to the bars on the weekend and the way we'd come home after having a good time.

I give credit to Josh for being an amazing photographer. When I look at this picture, I feel like I'm still here. That I'm at the top of this hill looking down on Wellington ready to walk down to Cuba Street. That I'm standing next to my best friend ready to walk down and enjoy a nice dinner at our usual place. That we'll have a nice evening together, enjoying each other's company and be happy we have each other in our lives while we had time to physically be with each other.

I took a lot of pictures in New Zealand. But I never bothered to take a picture of this hill. It didn't seem significant at the time. It was just something that was always there and had no reason to be photographed. But after seeing this picture, this is what I should have taken pictures of. Places that I could look back on and see the personal connections I've made with everyone I've walked down that hill.

I now have a higher respect and love for photography. It isn't just about taking pretty pictures. To me its now about taking pictures of something that will touch people. Making people feel something they wouldn't have felt or thought about if it wasn't for looking at a specific photograph. It's to help people realize the small things in life and see how amazing they really are.

So a picture is worth a thousand words; well this one is to me. I could say a thousand different things about this place. I could tell a lot of different stories that happened here. I could say about times that I was happy, sad, frustrated. But each one those moments were special, special in it's own way. So although this was one of the few hills I walked on during my trip. A hill so small compared to the others, it did contribute to one the most amazing experiences of my life.