Rescuing this trophy from storage back home reminded me of how the passage of time always surprises. Years can crawl or leap forward, in this case, the near-decade that has gone by in a blink since visiting Tipton, Iowa for their Hardacre Film Festival. Holding the award in my hand again coaxed a flood of memories, like the accumulation of colored pencil shavings and dust that collected in the valleys of my keyboard, those years ago. Animation is a medium I’m always drawn back to, its gravitational pull too strong and the desire to experiment with visual storytelling too great. I’m thankful to have come across this again, as a reminder of being rewarded for the passion to create, while learning along the way.