Hi. I’m back. It’s been a busy time for our family this past week. Believe it or not, there are still senior year events taking place in the middle of summer. I’m guilty of feeding the beast. We had a graduation party for Andrew this past weekend. There are also swim meets and banquets. and other people’s graduation parties. It’s been a fun ride, and now it’s time to celebrate. Hence, the hiatus from my blog writing.
This year’s popular trend for graduation parties is a banner where you can display school photos from grades K-12. How hard can this be, right? I have thousands of photos of him from the last 18 years – 6,581 days – to be exact.
Unfortunately, I am not the most organized person when it comes to photos. I have boxes of them and in no particular order. After sifting through piles of pictures, I was still missing Kindergarten, 7th grade, 8th grade, and 11th grade. How can I possibly be missing 11th grade??? It was just last year! I had to improvise. Luckily, I post photos on Facebook pretty regularly, so I looked through my uploads until I filled all of the gaps.
Well, almost. I still couldn’t find a photo from 7th grade that I liked. And then it dawned on me. Use one of his bar mitzvah photos! I have a ton of them. I pulled out the box of prints and found the one being lifted in the chair during Hava Nagila (thanks, Chorus Photography!). Done!
I experienced an unexpected side effect while digging into the past. The walk down memory lane is both wonderful and exhausting. It’s been a long road, and many of our steps have turned into Kodak moments. Each photo tells a story. As I flipped, searched, and scrolled, the stories were on automatic replay in my mind.
The day he was born.
The time he celebrated his birthday in preschool.
The final curtain call as the lead in the 5th-grade play. (He was Mowgli in The Jungle Book).
That bar mitzvah photo.
His record-breaking time for breaststroke at the swim club.
Photographs and memories. Summer skies and lullabies.
Pass the Kleenex. I’m really going to miss seeing that mega-watt smile every morning.
Thank G-d for FaceTime.
Tamara
July 21, 2022 at 8:35 am (2 years ago)Oh, Elisa, I feel you! Mine is only starting 9th grade in a few weeks, and already I feel where have the years gone.
I have an idea why you’re missing pictures from last year. It starts with a C and ends with ovid. Killjoy.
PS: Once these tissues are still within reach, watch this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olSyCLJU3O0
Kebba Buckley Button
July 20, 2022 at 7:14 pm (2 years ago)Elisa, what a special time for your relationship with your son. And thank G-d for Facetime. Hug your loved ones while you can. Blessings!