As we got ready for the Celebration of my Father-in-Laws life in Maine last weekend, I spent hours and hours wading through photos. I’d volunteered to create the ‘slideshow’ for the service. I gathered and curated photos from every decade of his life. And in the process ended up going through decades of photos from my life. 

How often do you take time to look through your photos from ten, twenty, forty years ago?

I remember fondly my Nana Seaver had these super cool photo albums that were like drawers that slid in and out of a box. The photo holders were like a card deck when you flip them over. I’m not sure if I enjoyed the photos or the sensation of turning the pages more. But it is one of my favorite memories from her house. 

I noticed that while curating the slide show that while the “Jon” (my FIL) I had most recently been in relationship was mainly one person, there were many iterations of who made up that one person – a little boy on his first day of school, a graduate from medical school, a new parent, a cat parent, a hunter, a radiologist. 

It was remarkable to see him peer at his baby sister in the 1940’s. To see he and Kathy on their honeymoon and becoming parents. To watch them age through the years – and to realize that we also are aging through the years.  

Revisiting photos and memories can be like visiting an eye doctor – checking vision from multiple perspectives. When you are reminded of a moment in time, it can be like recovering a lost treasure.  Remembering through photos can be like looking at a map AFTER a trip is taken – “Oh, so that is how we got here.” Looking through memories can reconnect you to all the made you You today, the good and the sad. 

When did you last visit your photo history? What did you find there?