I took this image while my friend and I were wandering down the hallway of a sewer system near our school. We had walked by this sewer hundreds of times, but had never stopped to truly explore it. Our decision to take a deeper look was inspired by the theme of this contest; we wanted to see and investigate what we could find in this tunnel. As soon as we took our first steps down the hallway, we were immediately assaulted by the humid damp air and the foreboding stretch of tunnel ahead. We wanted to find out what lay on the other side of this stretch of concrete, but the further we traveled the darker it got. Eventually the only light we could see was the light from our flashlights. Nevertheless, we kept walking, hoping that we would find something in the darkness. Eventually, we saw a glimmer of light coming from the other side of the tunnel and we raced towards it until we were confronted with gold rays of sun and the wind against our faces.

I believe this piece symbolically shows what happens when people have the fortitude to push past perceived obstacles and continue down the path in which the outcome is unclear. We wanted to leave and we didn't know what was around us, nevertheless we endured and we were rewarded with the beauty that laid hidden on the other side. Through this photo, I was able to capture a moment in time depicting what exploration and investigation means to me.