Can I Be Old-Fashioned Now?

My cousin, Kelly (that was for you, Kristi) has been posting some old photos on Facebook of our dad's family from back in the day. It's so crazy to see images of my dad, my aunts and uncles, and my grandparents in their youth. A lot of faces pop out and look very familiar. I see a lot of my own siblings, nieces and nephews, and myself in some of the pictures.

Anyway, it goes without saying that I love photos of any kind. In fact, I might call it an obsession. I LOVE to look through photo albums. There is something so timeless about a photo. It's a moment captured in time that lives on forever. Often, these images are only a doorway into a whole host of other memories and recollections. My dad (who does not have Facebook) was on my account last night looking at a lot of the pictures, and he made several comments on them, recounting his days as a young boy as he saw each image. I love that.

And those pictures look so aged and old to me. The clothes they wore, what they did, how they looked; it all looks so dated and old fashioned.

Today, as I was walking along Main St. in the sunny 60 degree afternoon, I was thinking... at what point is the life I am living now going to be "old-fashioned?" It's inevitable... time passes, and we can't stop it. And I can look back as recently as the 90s and think... Wow. What was I wearing? What was my hair? Why did I think THAT gadget was cool? But we take pleasure in what is exciting in the moment. Yesterday's technology is slow and faulty; tomorrow's style is not yet revealed. I can't know the future and often don't want the past.

Yet, there is something so nostalgic and wonderful about "old-fashioned." I love that. I think if I could have 10 wishes in my life, one of them would be to time travel back to each decade from 1900 on up. Live a day in 1910. 1920. 1930... what would I see? How would people talk? How would they dress? It would be so fun to see how my family, friends, and job would be affected by each era. It would actually be quite hysterical, I would imagine.

But I can't make today "old-fashioned" any more than I can get back yesterday. It's just the nature of time and how society evolves through it.

Through this all, I have one thing to be thankful for... my passion. I'm lucky that my job is also my hobby, and it's also the one thing that will help all of this stay connected. Having pictures of (most) every second of my life will help me to remember it, cherish it, and talk about special memories as I continue to get older.

One day, when my grandkids ask, "Grandma, why did you wear THAT?" at least I'll have several pictures to help paint the story of why things were the way they were.

And... I'm hoping that, since my style tends to be quite eccentric anyway, that truth alone will be enough of an explanation.

Love you all!

T