Technology and memory
Creating a Family Photo Album in a Digital Age
My search for lasting ways to remember my kids’ childhoods
My childhood is well-documented. In two thick, faux-leather bound albums I can find photos of myself from birth through high school graduation. There are photos of my first day of school, of carving pumpkins, of making snowmen in the backyard, and photos of many, many birthdays.
These albums have taken on new meaning to me now that I am a mother. As my kids pass through stages of their childhoods, I see new meaning in the old photos, recognizing resemblances between my kids and my family members that emerge with age, and appreciating all the labor my mother put into those birthday parties.
The photos were almost all taken by my mother, and they are good photos that capture the spirit of my childhood. She had a professional-quality camera and an artist’s eye. The photos originated from rolls of negatives rather than in an iPhone library, and I see the difference in the clarity, the rightness of the colors — not too garish and not too dull. I see the details, like the designs on the homemade shorts and t-shirt outfits my mother made for our summer clothes. I recognize in the background toys that my mom has saved all these years and that my kids play with now.
