Pictures matter, but living authentically builds the real core memories.

Most of my childhood photos are missing. I believe I have less than five of them. It’s kind of a bummer, considering that I was a cute, albeit annoying kid. So, now as an adult, I really value pictures of my own children. Thankfully, there are many. We have few photos of the daily ho hum moments. We mostly captured the fun trips. We would go on adventures, window shop, visit parks, and eat great food. And every time, there was a camera ready to record the fun! We still do that now.

In fact, our family knows that whenever there’s a smile on a face, a camera is coming out. They tend to run away to check their hair before allowing me to take my famous candid shots.

So, maybe I go a bit overboard. But can you blame me? I want to hold onto these amazing moments. Life together is so very good! And having been raised by my grandparents, I know that the house gets really empty and really quiet after a while. I don’t want to hurry into the future to that stage of life, I’ll tell you.

Going beyond the Photos

It’s been really sad to have so few images from my own childhood. Yet, my memories can suddenly reappear even without pictures of an event. An unexpected memory can crop up when I see an old toy that someone in my past once had. I can smell pool chlorine or touch a holly bush, and another memory will begin to surface. For so many of us, a certain doll, an old lamp that switches on or off by tapping the shade, or a sudden glimpse of a style of shoes we once wore can bring lovely moments from our past to mind. So, is it any wonder that vintage items are my favorite collectable? Of course, I’m trying to sell off those collectibles to make room for our real life at the moment, but that’s a story for another time.

What time is it now? Don’t check your phone. I’ll tell you. It’s time for us to value the memories we’re making today. People create lovely scenes so that they can show an idealized image to the world, but we would benefit from focusing on creating authentic experiences that are worth photographing, even if the details in the camera don’t seem perfect.

So, I’m putting away my camera and the desire to create perfect posts online, and I’m focusing instead on how to plant seeds that will sprout into traditions and happy stories that we can share for years to come. Because there’s way more living to do before this life is over. So please commit to really live life now. To make happy, joyful, guilt-free memories with the people around you and even with yourself. Because today we have a chance to start again. Let’s not waste it.

A post by Stephanie from StephanieOrsini.com