Recreating Photos

On the piano in my living room is a picture of two young lovers. She is in a white dress. Her arm is around him. Eyes shut. her head is pressed against his chest. She is safe. She is at peace. He has just whispered something beautiful in her ear. The new ring on his finger reaches for her cheek. He is confident. In that small space they share he has all he will need.

In this moment there is no thought for a future that holds struggle or disagreement. There is only space in this frame for the certainty of a future together. In this moment, she holds him in high regard. In this photo, he is committed to protecting her.

There is this funny meme on the internet: people recreating photos their past. You've seen this. Adults pose for a photo in the places, clothing, or with props similar to a photo that was taken when they were young. Grown siblings, for instance, crowd into a bathtub to recreate a n embarrassing photo from their youth. When they are not cringy, they are hilarious or often sweet; nostalgic.

(Side note: I am not in the photo that is attached to the title page of this blog, nor is anyone I know. I just thought it was too perfect of a photo to not include here)

There is an underlying gravity to these photos:

Everything changes but Nothing is different

Life changes us. Our ideals and principles evolve. Plans and motives shift. Priorities are re-ordered. We leave behind old dreams. We develop new skills, lose interest in others. Injuries, mistakes, and bad choices can leave us unrecognizable from the photos of our youth.

But it's still me in those old photos. While the experience of life can change who we are today and who we will be tomorrow, it has no power to change who we were then. In some ways, nothing is different.

What would it look like to recreate that photo of those lovers that sits on the piano in my living room? Years later the emotions, the confidence, and the dreams in that photo are unrecognizable. They are more practical today... they are concerned with mortgages and car payments, kid's schedules. They are shattered by injuries that haven't healed. They are tired and worn down by the years. There is an indifference that could not be imagined by the lovers in that photo

Everything has changed. But Nothing is different.

He still wants her to feel safe and at peace. He still knows that everything he needs can fit into the frame of that picture. He still believes there is only room for certainty of a future together.

How do we recreate that photo?