Some of you will be aware of my very personal story, which I wrote about on LinkedIn, back in September 2017
Then in September 2018, the Sunday Telegraph did an article about it. They wanted pictures.
Sorry, I said, I don’t think I’ve ever had a picture of me and my Mum together. Very gently but firmly, they told me to go find one!
Well, what’s interesting, is that when I asked family about this, they were very forthcoming, and I was able to share a photo which I’d simply never seen before. It was a wonderful experience on so many levels.
And then, because my world is so interconnected, and because it was about more than the photo, I watched the Disney movie “Coco” and for those of you who haven’t watched it, please do. I was meant to, and that movie just enhanced the meaning of my previously unseen photos, not hidden, but I had never sought them out, and as soon as I asked, it turned out one is on the mantelpiece of my Uncle Peter, every single day.
When he saw it reproduced in a national paper, knowing the real one is in his home on display, he told me it was a strange feeling. That very personal memory, now being in the public domain.
The world is changing, with the digitalisation of a lot of our pictures and where we might previously have journalled, long hand in a notebook, perhaps we now “post” or “Instagram” instead.
Whatever you do, enjoy your memories in a way that’s meaningful to you. And if it occurs to you that there may be pictures captured by others, of your past and that of your family, ask to see them. You may be as surprised and delighted as I was, by what comes to light and therefore comes to life.