We were lucky to catch up with Roberto Rosa recently and have shared our conversation below.
Roberto, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
I was born and raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, NYC. I grew up in NYCHA (Alfred E. Smith Houses) and was educated through the public school system.
NYC is huge, fast-paced, and unforgiving — but it is also a very rewarding city if your skin is thick enough to withstand the inevitable tests that you’ll face daily. Oh yeah, and I’m also the middle child — not quite the baby, but still not quite the leader of the pack — so finding balance and discovering new ways to stand out is what ultimately pushed me to become who I am today.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
You just never know where life’s going to lead you:
I finished college back in 2008, majoring in Social Work/Sociology, with a minor in Religion. I came back home from college completely unsure of my next step, but determined not to settle back into life as I knew it before college. I didn’t come from a ton of money, but we managed as a family, and I was determined as an individual; I always made sure to think beyond the circumstances at hand and trust the process for something greater if I worked towards it.
To provide for myself in college I used my cut hair — we turned the dorm’s bathroom into a barbershop — this kept cash in my pocket and further built my network; you’d be surprised by the resources provided by folks in positions of power when they need a haircut. Some of my closest friends are people I connected with through cutting hair, and some of those people still look to me when they need a haircut.
Fast-forward a few years, while working at a barbershop in NYC I was hit by a yellow taxi, injuring my left shoulder, left wrist, and lower back…that moment changed my life forever. I was an apprentice barber at the time, dreaming of becoming a master barber and owning my shop someday, but that was cut short. What felt like a nightmare, a halt, and a disadvantage redirected my life for the better. I went from spending all day at the shop to spending multiple days per week in physical therapy, unable to work, and falling into depression. I thought that this was how my story would remain, and I feared that this was how my story would end.
I met my wife, Shakera in 2010. We crossed paths at my absolute lowest point and she has stood by my side through every season of life imaginable. We met at an open mic in Newark, NJ…we often laugh about neither of us wanting to be at the event, but grateful for how everything unfolded for us. At the time, I was just getting back into writing and trying out Slam Poetry, and she was already blogging, carrying her camera with her. Slam Poetry opened up a ton of doors for me and really pushed me creatively; in 2012 I was a part of the Jersey City Slam team that competed at the National Poetry Slam in Charlotte, NC. I learned so much about myself through these creative outlets – I still write a little, but my creative tool of choice has been photography. Who knows tho, maybe someday I’ll find a way to merge those two worlds and do something with my poetry and photography.
Photography is really where my heart is at – I’m grateful for the ability to snap photos and document life as it’s happening daily. I owe a lot to my wife for pushing me to take photography more seriously. Lately, I’ve started to realize just how powerful photos truly are – one minute you’re just snapping a basic shot, but years later, somehow that same photo holds more meaning. I’m humbled by that gift…to preserve moments that most of us mistake as ordinary, until what once felt “ordinary” isn’t there anymore. People, places, things…you blink and they’re just gone, often without warning. Pulling photos of those people, places, and things years later, it’s truly indescribable and fills me with so much accomplishment and pride.
I remember it vividly, just a few months into our relationship Shakera let me borrow her camera. I remember bringing her Nikon CoolPix L110 back to the city with me and snapping photos of my neighborhood — I would’ve never imagined all of the opportunities that would come from borrowing that camera; I would’ve never imagined growing so passionate about an art form, learning to view the world around me a bit differently daily.
Fast-forward a bit more and now I bring a camera with me almost everywhere. I teach Mobile Photography to Middle Schoolers, snap photos with my son on our morning commute, and use photography as a way to remain sane when it feels like the world is crumbling around me. I still write — I also teach Slam Poetry to my Middle School students, and helping them express themselves creatively keeps me sharp. All of these things I don’t take for granted — and all of these blessings came directly from a season where I couldn’t see the light at the end of that tunnel. I’m learning to be grateful and to keep quiet, just letting God be God, because clearly, the plans that I have for myself don’t always work out how I’d imagine them to. I’m cool with that now. I’m at peace knowing that I have a ton of gifts, and creative outlets to enjoy life through, no matter what’s ahead.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
In HS I met a teacher named Luba — a phenomenal artist and educator. I remember asking Luba about this huge painting that she was working on when she said something like, “Treat each part of the painting like its own painting and it’ll take care of itself.”
I’ve learned that to create something greater, you must put effort into each part that ultimately makes it great. Brick by brick, page by page, and step by step — there are no shortcuts to a worthwhile legacy, and I’m passionate about leaving a legacy worth remembering.
Our legacy is like a home built with our own hands. Each brick placed intentionally and securely will reward us with our dream home, whether in the form of success, wealth, friendships, love, career, etc. How we place those single bricks will determine how we’ll live forever.
I’m learning that life really is like a book; I’m hoping to write a life worth reading — so each page, like the bricks mentioned above, has to be curated or the public will try to tell your story for you, through their filtered version. You’re living your life, so be sure to document it properly through whatever creative outlet you have.
I’m getting older — I just turned 40 and I wish that I could do so much differently, but I’m also oddly content in how life is happening. I think the most important thing I’ve learned to accept is that time is both, a thing to be safeguarded and a thing to be used without too much caution calculated out of fear. You have to live intentionally, at the speed that your feet allow for you to live it. Slow down when needed, but you better pick up when you can, because life happens fast — and even if you’re lucky enough to think back on your life at 100 years old, it’ll still feel like you just never had enough time. Take those steps…life happens fast, but so does death…so live while you can. There has to be a balance. I’m a father of two: my son Hiro, and my daughter Shiloh keep me balanced. Hiro is shy, creative, and cautious; Shiloh is fierce, unapologetic, and a pure artist. My kids are complete opposites, yet when I stare at them I realize that I share all of those qualities with them – somehow I see my greatest gifts and my greatest shortcomings in both of them; I do my best to encourage them, which in a way encourages me to push past my limits. Becoming a parent will change your entire way of living; becoming a parent has given me purpose, courage, and unexplainable strength in all areas of my life…oh, but it isn’t easy. Being an active, intentional, and caring parent requires more than you’ll ever be able to give of ourself, and that’s why my faith is so strong. God absolutely tests you through your kids and there is no way to prepare for it (lol).
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
I need better equipment. I’ve studied and practiced photography for so many years; I’ve grown creatively and I’ve pushed my camera gear to the max, but I know that it’s time to upgrade. Unfortunately, I don’t have thousands of dollars to spend on new gear, and I’ve been trying to justify this next big purchase as an investment — I know what I’m capable of now with limited resources, and I’m curious as to where my camera could take me if I had the best that technology could offer/money could buy.
I’m not sure of how I’m going to conquer that challenge — life is expensive; life as a caring husband, father, and creative is 10x more expensive (lol).
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/roberto_rosa3rd/
