Make Sure You Get in That Family Photo

No.

I don’t want to right now.

Why?

Please, do not make me.

The above pretty much were standard by me when I was asked by my dad, my wife or really anyone to be in a picture.

I do not like being in pictures. I will take them all day, but being in them is a different thing altogether.

I am a lot like my mother in that regard.

In fact, my mom despised being in pictures. She would obviously be in them every now and then, but the common refrain from my mom was “I just want pictures of all of you.”

I say the same thing. I love having pictures of my wife and children, but I could care less about seeing myself in the pictures.

It was years before I was in a picture with my family with my in-laws. Not because I do not like them. Very much quite the opposite. I just always found a way to get out of the photo because I do not like being in photos.

My mom never wanting to be in pictures never bothered me at all. Until this week.

Growing up (really probably last Christmas even), when I told him I did not want to be in a picture, my dad inevitably would always say, “you’ll want these pictures one day.”

I always would say, “we have enough.”

Well, as always, my dad was right.

The fact that my mom did not like being in pictures is tough now that she has departed the world.

We have a great deal of pictures and video, but not enough.

As I have been going through pictures to make for her visitation PowerPoint, it’s just not enough. We have great pictures to go along with great memories, but it’s just not enough.

I don’t think you can ever have enough.

I know I said not enough multiple times above, but that is for a reason in that now we have to live off of those memories since my mother left this earth at 8:38 on Dec. 8.

I am incredibly thankful for the pictures and much more that we do have, but it will never be enough.

Next time somebody asks me to be in a picture, you better believe I am going to say yes.