Insanity Runs in the Family...

I have spent the last two days whittling 539 orchid pictures thankfully down to 158. It occured to me during this process, that even as beautiful as every orchid picture I keep is, a person must be insane to keep so many pictures of a flower. Now, if it were only flowers I keep pictures of, maybe it would not be so bad. However, it is not just flowers. I have thousands of digital pictures still to be sorted through, organized and thousands to toss. I have pictures of friends, family, places and things. I have pictures of beauty, pictures of wonder, pictures of amazement, and pictures of sadness.I have picture stories to tell, pictures of scenes, picture backgrounds to enjoy and pictures of pets. And of course, I have taken pictures of journeys to be taken:

Where am I going on this journey? What is this leading to?

…back to pictures, Euvah, back to pictures. During this process of sorting, some other things have come to light. I have taken pictures of pictures that OTHER people have taken, I have back-ups of other people’s pictures, and I have the actual pictures that other people took and have shared with me. I have genealogy pictures, family pictures and really OLD genealogy pictures – and I have Christmas card pictures. I even have a check with a picture of a bank on it from the 1800’s – and a picture of the same bank 100+ years later – unchanged. Literally.

This thought process even took a different turn. Thinking back, I realized that my dad used to love taking pictures. My mom used to love taking pictures. Obviously, if I have genealogy pictures, then my old relatives, both living and dearly beloved, also loved taking pictures. While pondering this, my daughter posted – you guessed it – pictures of our granddaughter. My sister had also just posted pictures of her kids getting new bicycles on her blog, and thus it occurred to me that BOTH sisters love taking pictures, too. Not with regret, I have passed this insanity on in our family. Our daughter is an up and coming photographer - her pictures simply take my breath away. Ok, I have established that we are ALL photographers to some degree. Some better than others, but we are all photographers none the less. We are always on the lookout for another memory aka "Justa clickin’!"

Sitting quietly at my desk, sorting the many pictures I have taken, it was then that it realized that it could only be insanity causing me to take so many pictures. After all, I have to sort them, edit them, toss some, save some and share some. It is all very time consuming - and we relive those moments like instant replay over and over again. Now, I am not the only one taking pictures, remember, the rest of my family are also taking pictures and doing the same things as well. So I have decided that this strange photography insanity runs in my family and the tradition keeps on going. (Just so I don’t worry Steve, Todd and John; we know you are not blood related – but we gotcha covered - not to worry.)

Our family has taken pictures for so long that cameras have actually become an extra appendage to each of us. If we are walking and talking, we have a camera attached somewhere on our person – that is a given.

It is with this insanity that I will share one reason we take pictures:

We do this to treasure the memories and to share the knowledge of what life is like now. We do it to capture that moment in time when a child's face is still a child. We do it to imprint the visions in our minds for that forgotten moment - and for the warmth it brings back when we see that vision once again. We do it for future generations and to embrace who we were and what we were like. We want to look back and remember the good times, the sad times, and the times when words just do not say what looking at a picture can say.

Someday, somehow, maybe you can look back with with this thought, “This insanity was inherited - for I too take pictures.”

Photography insanity - I think if it is not inherited, it is can definitely be contagious. You can start the insanity in your family at any moment – I have no idea how long the incubation period could be, but it should come, may come... anytime now. You should grab a camera just in case you see life flashing before your eyes! When the urge hits, just start clickin’ and you will begin to see our passion.

Kids grow up, flowers die, a new snow falls, another days passes with a beautiful 'once in a lifetime' sunset – but capture that memory and a picture lasts forever. It is with this insanity I keep on sorting, keep on clicking and keep on smiling... and while doing so, I "remember when?"

Insanity runs in our family. It is a genetic path I must follow and one trait that I am glad I inherited.

Excuse me, there is a sunset happening on my balcony...