I Want To Remember

I keep thinking about how few photographs of family we have from recent years, especially on my father's side of the family.  When I was little, I can remember going with my mom and dad to my aunt and uncle's home in Belle Vernon.

I remember sitting at the kitchen table with mom and dad drinking iced tea. I remember playing with Duchess, the big German Shepard that was one of many Duchesses.  What makes me sad, are there are no pictures.

Knowing how ill my uncle is, made me think about photos. My grandmother had hundreds of them in her house from younger days.  Even though there wasn't much call for photography in her last years, there were still pictures, from family gatherings and her 100th birthday party.  There are things that can be pulled out so that people down the line can say, that was Grandma Rehula.  Her face won't fade from memory.

However with my dad's family there aren't many pictures.  I was an adult before I saw a photo of my grandma and grandpap from my father's family. There was a picture of Grandpap Rehula on my grandmother's TV at all times. That picture now sits in our living room.  I never knew my grandfather, but I can see  his face clearly in my mind.

There is nothing like this from my dad's family. There are a few photos from family reunions in the 80s when I was a little girl, but other than that, nothing and yet my dad came from a large family.  The sad part is, though I've met most all of them, I can't remember the faces of the ones who have passed on, with only one exception.

I know a lot of people dislike having their picture taken. I'm one of them, but people down the line might want to remember you, so maybe the pain of that flash isn't so bad.  I don't want to be gone and forgotten.