Past and Future Selves

I was reading a magazine, and one of their crowd-sourced question and answer articles was "What Moment in Your Life Do You Wish Had Been Photographed?" The answers from readers varied widely. But it made me pause and think about my own answer, and then ask the same question on IG. And the responses I received also varied widely, from faraway vacations (boy do I miss those) to the birth of a child, to small backyard moments of kids who are now grown. The obvious common thread between them all is that they're all pieces of your life. Pieces and parts that you want to remember. You wish that you had the physical, tangible proof of that moment to hold onto.

If you could go back in time, would you tell yourself to take more photos? Would you warn yourself that you’re going to want to remember that moment? Would your past self listen to your future self to document the simple pieces of your life?

You are your future’s past self. Right now. Are you thinking about what your future self might tell you about getting those photos done? Do you think your future self might appreciate if you hired someone to help you get into the photographs with your children?

Even professionals hire other professionals to help them. I am currently having my family photographed by another RVA photographer, and I’m excited to see what Kate sees from her outside perspective; the beauty in the details that I know she’ll capture.

I have tried to hide all the messy parts of life with toddlers but the toddlers have unmade most of my efforts, and that will be documented as well. There will be fingerprint smudges on the windows. Her hair will be all over the place. He will insist we take the cushions off the couch and jump into the pile. I’m sure there’s a mound of toys she has dumped out in the playroom, and the blue fluff from that piece of yarn that keeps shedding all over the house will be embedded in the carpet. At some point I relent to my future self to stop worrying so much about it; that the toys and dust and smudges are all details that deserve their place in my memory.

And sometime this month, my future self will thank my past self for the investment of tangible memories, and I’ll be thrilled to see myself in my own house, with my own family, surrounded by our own mess.

Help your future self thank your past self, and don’t forget to get in the photos too.