Found Today, Written in 2013…
I have been trying to accomplish one of my New Year's Resolutions--to get my digital pictures sorted, printed and filed. I have finished sorting up to February of this year! That is a HUGE accomplishment since I haven't undertaken this task since 2010! That’s a lot of pictures to sort through!
Anyway, in the process I came to a file titled "Brandon's pictures." When I clicked on the folder, I found pictures that my son Brandon had taken years ago with a little camera he got for a birthday or Christmas present. I am so glad I found those pictures.
Children take pictures of things that adults never would:
selfies complete with chocolate mustaches on their face and boogers in their nose,
pictures of their brothers wrestling on the couch, riding bikes, or jumping on trampolines,
pictures of family members watching television or playing video games,
pictures of the movie they are watching on television,
pictures of birds and the sky and the very tall bush outside the bedroom window.
Children aren't concerned about what the person is wearing or if the person even wants to be photographed. They aren’t concerned about whether the room is clean or whether the dirty underwear on the floor can be seen. They don’t care if the wallpaper border is peeling, or whether the lighting is just right. They could care less about appropriate poses. They see. They point. They click, and they capture moments—simple everyday moments.
As I looked through my son’s pictures, I got a glimpse of what life looked like through his eyes. I remembered moments that had so easily slipped from my memory. They weren’t birthday moments or graduation moments. They weren’t “special” moments that we tend to treasure and tuck away into our hearts and minds. These were just ordinary day-to-day moments that I hadn’t even realized I had forgotten, like the first time my oldest son went shopping with his dad on Black Friday or the way my boys used to play football in the living room.
Looking through those pictures reminded me again of how quickly time flies by, how fast my boys are growing up, and how important it is not to take our monotonous routines for granted. As cliche as it sounds, somewhere there is someone who would love to experience the kind of hum-drum existence I call life. And one day I too will miss many of the things that I now find boring or even frustrating. I will miss having endless loads of laundry and having to tell the boys yet another time to quit running in the house. I will miss the multitude of dirty glasses sitting on the kitchen counter and the Legos all over the living room floor because those are indicators of busy, growing children, and when they are gone, then I know my children will not be children any more. Looking at those pictures reminded me of the many, many moments that have already slipped by.
Obviously, we can’t stop the passing of time. Our children will grow up, and really, we wouldn’t have it any other way. Our greatest desire is that they grow into healthy, Godly young men and women. Brandon’s pictures were just one more reminder that while I can’t stop the years from flying by, I should make a greater effort to enjoy the moments, even the ordinary moments, that make up our lives, and never, ever wish a day away.