Cozy Contemplations - 20. Chapter 20 The Photo

Photos are memories we hold in our hands ...

4 minutes ago, dughlas said:

Photos are memories we hold in our hands ...

Yes, they are, and they're a real comfort. I've destroyed some in the past, thinking it would make things easier... that was a mistake. I treasure mine now... some more than others... thanks, dugh  

Photos, precious seconds, moments of perfect light or gap toothed smiles, remind us of the joy and peace we held, like water cupped in the hand. Beautifully told, beautifully spoken. 

24 minutes ago, Parker Owens said:

Photos, precious seconds, moments of perfect light or gap toothed smiles, remind us of the joy and peace we held, like water cupped in the hand. Beautifully told, beautifully spoken. 

Thanks, Parker  ... yup, like water cupped in a hand....

Funny thing about photos...they capture a moment, a feeling, a person for us to hold dear for ever after...our first ones are taken by others because we're too young to operate cameras--then when we can do it ourselves, how often do we forget in the joy of the moment?  Lives get so full of people and moments that we unknowingly let some pass uncaptured except in our heads--there'll always be a tomorrow when we can do it properly.

I have two albums of pictures, and a wooden chest that once held a family Bible, now full of more pictures...almost every single person in those is now departed, leaving faded color images, or even stark black and white we can color with our minds from later events....There were so many more moments we could have captured if we'd taken a moment, until the moments ran out.  In the days of cameras and roll film, it was so much harder to capture these times; how many more images would we have taken had we really thought of it?

For me, digital media came too late for many relatives and friends, but when it came, did I go around capturing current friends on a card?  Once or twice, yes, but the habit of having a tomorrow had settled in, so there are some people in my life now of whom I have maybe one or two pictures...others none at all, and they live now only in my head. 

Those who grew up with cell phones won't understand...but for the rest of us...I urge you--go out and take a picture of some happy scene with a friend, a loved place or even the family pet--tomorrow may not come for them.  Don't regret a missed opportunity to add tangibility to your memories!

Photographs.. capturing a moment that remind us of days gone by. They can either bring a smile or a tear, but will always bring a memory.  Beautifully written, Gary  

4 hours ago, ColumbusGuy said:

Funny thing about photos...they capture a moment, a feeling, a person for us to hold dear for ever after...our first ones are taken by others because we're too young to operate cameras--then when we can do it ourselves, how often do we forget in the joy of the moment?  Lives get so full of people and moments that we unknowingly let some pass uncaptured except in our heads--there'll always be a tomorrow when we can do it properly.

I have two albums of pictures, and a wooden chest that once held a family Bible, now full of more pictures...almost every single person in those is now departed, leaving faded color images, or even stark black and white we can color with our minds from later events....There were so many more moments we could have captured if we'd taken a moment, until the moments ran out.  In the days of cameras and roll film, it was so much harder to capture these times; how many more images would we have taken had we really thought of it?

For me, digital media came too late for many relatives and friends, but when it came, did I go around capturing current friends on a card?  Once or twice, yes, but the habit of having a tomorrow had settled in, so there are some people in my life now of whom I have maybe one or two pictures...others none at all, and they live now only in my head. 

Those who grew up with cell phones won't understand...but for the rest of us...I urge you--go out and take a picture of some happy scene with a friend, a loved place or even the family pet--tomorrow may not come for them.  Don't regret a missed opportunity to add tangibility to your memories!

   

Beautifully expressed, Buddy, and so true. I have an old photo of my mom, back when she was about thirty, and the resemblance to my younger daughter is astonishing. I cherish it with all my heart. I wish I had more of them. The one I speak of in this poem has evolved from something that caused pain to something that makes me smile, each and every time I look at it.   Thank you for such a wonderful comment... it's a shame that actual photos are becoming relics of the past for some, but in life, all things change... cheers... G-man xoxoxo

1 hour ago, LitLover said:

Photographs.. capturing a moment that remind us of days gone by. They can either bring a smile or a tear, but will always bring a memory.  Beautifully written, Gary  

Thanks, Lit. Yup, smile or tears, and sometimes both...  

57 minutes ago, Headstall said:

Beautifully expressed, Buddy, and so true. I have an old photo of my mom, back when she was about thirty, and the resemblance to my younger daughter is astonishing. I cherish it with all my heart. I wish I had more of them. The one I speak of in this poem has evolved from something that caused pain to something that makes me smile, each and every time I look at it.   Thank you for such a wonderful comment... it's a shame that actual photos are becoming relics of the past for some, but in life, all things change... cheers... G-man xoxoxo

Interesting about the picture of your mom--I have one of mine about that age, that would be just before I was conceived.  Mid-50s from the cars in the background where she stands on a sidewalk in Columbus near her house then, her hair braided and wrapped around her head (it was down to the floor when undone) and a print dress down just past her knees.  I didn't think of it when I first saw it, but she was pretty, and I could see why my dad married her.  Who can picture their mom that way?  And she'd already had my three older sisters by this time! 

Crap I just had a thought--that dress looked similar to the one my sisters dressed me up in when I was six or seven, even the low-heeled black shoes!  That pic is in my Gallery...my mom looked better in it than I did! 

2 minutes ago, ColumbusGuy said:

 

Interesting about the picture of your mom--I have one of mine about that age, that would be just before I was conceived.  Mid-50s from the cars in the background where she stands on a sidewalk in Columbus near her house then, her hair braided and wrapped around her head (it was down to the floor when undone) and a print dress down just past her knees.  I didn't think of it when I first saw it, but she was pretty, and I could see why my dad married her.  Who can picture their mom that way?  And she'd already had my three older sisters by this time! 

Crap I just had a thought--that dress looked similar to the one my sisters dressed me up in when I was six or seven, even the low-heeled black shoes!  That pic is in my Gallery...my mom looked better in it than I did! 

Such a lovely picture of a lovely lady. I can imagine how special this is to you.  The picture of my mom is in color, taken by a Polaroid Land Camera when they first came out... I just realized she was probably 38 in that photo... such a stunning woman she was... a cross between Elizabeth Taylor and Ava Gardner  

6 hours ago, Headstall said:

Such a lovely picture of a lovely lady. I can imagine how special this is to you.  The picture of my mom is in color, taken by a Polaroid Land Camera when they first came out... I just realized she was probably 38 in that photo... such a stunning woman she was... a cross between Elizabeth Taylor and Ava Gardner  

The one of my mom I think is when she was 30, just before she married my dad, which would put it in '56.  My sisters would have been four, six and eight years old then.  I have later color pics of her, but she'd cut her hair to shoulder length then...I think for the first time in her life.  Her mom never had hers cut and she wore it the same way.

Ah yes, Polaroids--our first one was black and white, then we got the color one which was used to take pics of me and a couple friends before high school graduation in '77.  One guy would turn out to be my first sexual encounter in college, the other was a German exchange student who was devilishly cute with his long brown hair and grey eyes, but I couldn't get up the courage to ask him to do anything. 

13 minutes ago, ColumbusGuy said:

 

The one of my mom I think is when she was 30, just before she married my dad, which would put it in '56.  My sisters would have been four, six and eight years old then.  I have later color pics of her, but she'd cut her hair to shoulder length then...I think for the first time in her life.  Her mom never had hers cut and she wore it the same way.

Ah yes, Polaroids--our first one was black and white, then we got the color one which was used to take pics of me and a couple friends before high school graduation in '77.  One guy would turn out to be my first sexual encounter in college, the other was a German exchange student who was devilishly cute with his long brown hair and grey eyes, but I couldn't get up the courage to ask him to do anything. 

I remember my mom buying that color camera for my Stepdad... it was a really big deal at the time.  

I love the longing and fragility in this piece. Great work.

16 hours ago, Lux Apollo said:

I love the longing and fragility in this piece. Great work.

That is exactly what was the spur for this poem... it is the fact of things. I'm still waiting for time to complete its work, and in the meantime, I have my treasure. Thank you for seeing that, and for commenting, Lux...  

A beautiful poem Gary.  It was also sad for me as many of the photos I treasured are now in the hand of others.  

47 minutes ago, raven1 said:

A beautiful poem Gary.  It was also sad for me as many of the photos I treasured are now in the hand of others.  

Thank you, Terry. I understand... I wish I had held onto photos I thought I didn't want... I was wrong.