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Photographs and Memories
Do you remember the Jim Croce song “Photographs and Memories” from the early 1970s? If so, you realize he’s recalling a relationship that didn’t quite work out the way he planned, and he’s left with only the souvenirs of their time together. As Christmas approaches, I, too, sometimes browse through a collection of photos that stir up wonderful memories from previous holidays.
Prior to our daughter Maria’s birth, my only camera was a cheap instamatic, and I knew I wanted something better for her arrival. Thus, I invested in a 35-millimeter, and I was ready to go when Maria arrived four days before Christmas in 1985. Among the many pictures I took of her that first week, both in the hospital and later at home, one stands out: a shot of her all nestled in a red snugly, resting in the baby carrier, and positioned underneath our Christmas tree. At the time, I didn’t realize it, but that first Christmas photo was the beginning of a 30-year adventure, a collection of Christmas photos near the tree of Maria, alone at first, and later with her sister, when Katrina arrived in June of 1988.
This album of only Christmas photos is so special because we can see not only the girls’ annual growth, but we can also chronicle a bit of our family’s history. We see the apartment where we lived for Maria’s first two years, the townhouse we rented for the next four years, and then two more years…
