This Mother's Day

It struck me recently how few photographs I have of my mother.

Now, as phones have morphed into cameras, and film is a relic of the past, it seems everyone is snapping pictures all the time, of everything and anything.

When I was young, the camera didn't come out that often. Certainly there were photos taken on special occasions and holidays, but other than that - not so much. And when there were pictures involved, my mom was more often than not the one behind the camera.

As a result, she's not in many of the snapshots I have of my formative years. And because she suffered a massive stroke at a relatively young age, there were very few photos taken of her after that.

I am happy to have some portraits of her which were made when she was a young woman - and also a small book containing snapshots from her childhood.

Having been the caboose in our family - coming wayyyyy at the end of the line - I was surprised even at a young age to find out that my mother had a small album containing pictures of her, her sisters, and some family and friends. She was a youngster a LONG time ago, after all!

I hadn't realized then that inexpensive Brownie cameras first arrived on the scene in 1900 - so by the time she was born, the novelty had worn off a bit and it wasn't unusual to find them even in modest homes like those of my grandparents, who were family farmers in Nebraska.

They shot very little; I suspect film and processing was pricey (as was the case when I was a kid), but there are enough photos to provide an interesting view of her life as a child.

Lucky for me, as I have always been something of a family historian - and someone who is drawn to photographs! My photos of Mom are among my most treasured possessions. And though I have very few of them, my mind's eye is filled with vivid images of her.

She was one of God's most generous gifts to me.