Memory Lane: March 25, 2010

I love that I have these old family photos. This one was taken in November 1942. My Gram & Gramp with my aunt, who was not quite two (I think). A month ago, I shared another old photo and mused about all the little bits & pieces of the photo that I didn't know. While I still don't know who held the camera or what the exact occasion was (though I am going to guess at maybe Thanksgiving, since taking photos was far more of a luxury for special occasions than for every day use, as it is now), I do know more about the details.

One that is obvious to me is the location. The house behind my family is the house where my grandfather was born--literally!--and grew up with his brother and seven sisters. It is the house he would later inherit. The house where I would grow up. The two windows on either side of the house corner were in the kitchen. The one on the left would later be removed. The one on the right would later allow light into what would be the pantry/storage area off my childhood kitchen. The one all the way on the far right would also later be missing, as it would have been blocked by the shower/tub where our bathroom would be; I am not sure what would have occupied that space when this photo was taken. Just beyond view of that far right window would be another window. One that would remain and would look into what would be my bedroom from 1980-1992. To the right would be the driveway, and to the left, the steps leading to the kitchen door. I don't know what color the house was painted at this time, but when I was young it was a lovely 1970s shade of golden yellow with brown trim. It would later be sided in a warm tan with bright white trim. I can look at that photo & immediately navigate through that house in my mind.

Something you can't see, but which I can determine based on the photo's date, is that someone else is "in" this picture. The fact is, even the people in this photo may have been unaware at this time. But my Gram was very early in her pregnancy for my dad. Mere weeks at most. He would be born in August 1943.

As I look at the photo, my Gram with her hair done up (that was her natural hair color; she was blonde for as long as I knew her), all dressed up and in heels, and my Gramp in his suit and hat (he always wore a hat when he was very dressed up), I smile. I smile at familiar people, familiar places, and all the details I *do* know about these photos. Memories and facts that I am taking care to record, so that my potential future family members can look back and wonder just a little less.