I've been spending this week up in Illinois visiting my granparents. One thing that my grandma was great about is keeping all her photos from over the years. I made it my mission this trip to scan and save some of them, and let her tell me about their smiling inhabitants so that I could document them. As I go through the photographs, I think about the legacy that whomever was behind the lens has left. And how precious these photos are to me. Not only do I love the photos, but I love hearing my grandparents tell me what's going on in them. And the memories that spur from looking at them. Rummaging through these boxes has allowed me to connect the past with the present, and know my grandparents in a deep way. I can't think of anything more special than that, and reminds me of the opportunity for impact that I have every time I click the shutter.
The little clown in the corner is my Dad...the only way I could tell is the gap between his two front teeth. Priceless. I hope that someday the photos that we take will be cherished by someone as much as I love these.