The Anniversary I guess some kind of recognition should be paid to this date. I have now been blogging for one year. Consider this date now duly noted. Kodak Moments
I was helping my wife out with the Christmas clean up. Getting the house straightened out for the messy onslaught of the holidays. I sometimes wonder why we bother. Clean a corner now and by January 1st, it will be cluttered again. I push such thoughts aside now. I have learned that women, specifically my wife, have their own logic and it suits me to go along. To fight it is a losing battle. So, I helped this year. I vacuumed, dusted, etc. A built-in bookcase in the living room had become the catch all for all the many family and friends kodak moments. The four shelves had 20 years worth of nephews and nieces piled up and covered in dust. Every team photo of Lis, our daughter was mixed in. And to top it all off, ancient dusty black and white photos of my family from the early 1900's. It had obviously been a long time since anyone had taken the time to maintain these shelves. The dust was so thick on some photos, I had to wipe them off to see who was caught in the snapshot. This disorganized mish mash had to go. I pulled all the photos off the shelves, dusted them, and then critically sorted through them. This pile of 50 or so pictures would be whittled down to leas than 30. I knew not to throw any out. I put the ones that did not make my cut into the lower drawer of the Korean chest. My wife would certainly want to have her impact. So keeping them handy for retreival was a smart idea. Sorting through the various school pictures, team pictures, buddy shots, and ancestoral reminders, I was struck by how connected I was to the World. No matter how much I sometimes feel alienated and alone, knowing these people were or are part of my life tells me I am not alone. There are folks out there who do care about me and my circumstances. People who would rise up to offer what help they could without being asked. And I draw comfort from that. Some indigenous tribes somewhere thought photos took part of the soul to make the print. I think they were wrong. Pictures of friends, family and pets prove we have one. Would a souless person bother to concern themselves with reminders of the people of their past and present? Our friends, family and pets give our souls substance. Without them, we are just marking time and taking up space.
Blatant Self Indulgence
