I needed a bit of a helping hand this evening with a blog post. I found some prompts and chose this one…
“Post a photograph that means something to you and then tell us why you chose it. (It can be your photo or someone else’s.)”
This is a photo of me and my grand-daughter, Lillianna. It was taken in August of 2006 when my then best friend and I traveled to visit my daughter and her girls. My daughter was just starting a custody battle with the father of her first two children and Lilli’s father. At the time this was taken, the other two grand daughters were happily playing in the pool and my friend was sitting next to me and snapped this photo. It’s one of a few all time favorites of mine for a number of reasons.
1. The look on Lilli’s face is priceless. She’s so expressive here, with a look that seems years beyond her small little body.
2. I look natural. I’ve got a baby in my arms, I’m giving her a kiss and I’m happy. Even though I was worried about the situation, I had family and friends with me and I knew I was well-loved. In a rare and unguarded moment, this photo shows my love and attachment.
3. I know who was sitting next to me. (You done good on this shot, lol)
4. I only have one poorly printed copy of this photo, which makes it even more precious. As you can see, it’s out of focus, grainy and has some obvious printer lines through it. I printed it out long ago, but through various crashes and data issues, I think I’ve lost the original digital version. This is a scan of the paper photo I have. Just like I’ve lost a ton of music to various issues and ignorance, I’ve lost some photos, too. I’m lucky I have this paper version, but if the person who took it happens to have a digital copy, I’d be forever thankful if you could send it to me.
5. The probability of my request never being answered in number 4 is what makes a number 5. There are some people who touch you deep down inside who you think will be with you forever and then, they aren’t. There is no blame, no guilt, no finger-pointing, just nothing. They aren’t there, they aren’t available and sometimes, for no other reason than you really liked them for who they were, for the things you shared (like this snippet of time) the easy conversation and the laughter you had, you miss them.
6. This picture is a small slice of time right before things went pretty sour. My daughter lost her custody battle and all three grandchildren were taken from her about a year later and the person who took this photo was gone not too long after that. When I look at Lilli, I think of that sunny afternoon at the pool in front of my daughter’s apartment. The girls were splashing and playing in their floaty suits, having a ball with some friends. They were happy. Lilli was warm and soft and felt so good in my arms. Shortly after this photo was taken, my friend was holding Lilli and was singing Barney songs to her. She tugged on her ears, gave him a look and put her head on his shoulder. It was an innocent, trusting, sweet and memorable moment.
Snippets and Tidbits 