Christmas Photo Cards

We've started to get family picture cards in the mail.

The question for us this year was, where do we put them? In years past, we would get the photo cards and magnet them to the refrigerator. This year, however, no fridge. Kim solved it for us by taking some cuttings from Karen's Christmas tree and hanging them from our walls. She strung up some ribbon to the cuttings and clipped pictures to the ribbon and the branches using our wooden clothespins. I really like it, it actually looks better than sticking them up on the fridge.

We get a whole variety of different photos coming to us. Some families choose to get a definite posed shot on the card. The children may be wearing some kind of matching aloha print wear and smiling for the camera. On the day of the shoot, it may have been a little bit of an effort to make sure everyone's hair was combed properly, no food smudges on the clothes, everyone was in a good mood, and at that moment the shutter clicks--all eyes were opened. It's a lot to juggle in capturing that one moment you want to share with your family and friends.

One of our dear friends sent us a card with some incredibly beautiful photos of her and her son. When I complimented her on the shots, she let me in on a little bit of the back story of the photo shoot. She hired a professional to do the photos and was excited about creating something wonderful. The weather was spectacular and everything was set--except her three year old son was in a foul mood. With deft skills and a little bit of M&Ms she was able to get him to be a stellar model. It's amazing how a little bit of extra sweetness can help you get things done.

Some families choose a montage of different photos taken throughout the year for their cards. They scour through their digital cameras or their photo files looking for the perfect moments to place on the cards. This year, for our photo card, we decided to pose for a shot as well as add photos from the year. Finding the photos from the year was easy. The pose was a different story. We decided to sit in front of Karen's tree and all wear blue. The tree was lit up, hair and make up set, beard trimmed and combed, doggie hat placed on Butch, three year old dressed and wiped, and Karen instructed on how to use our camera.
"Okay, Bodhi come sit on Daddy's lap."
"No Daddy, I want to sit over here by myself."
Karen: "If he sits there he won't be in the frame."
"Cmon Bodhi."
"I don't want to take pictures."
I pick up Bodhi and place him on my lap and a small but tiresome tantrum ensues.
"Do you need to sit by yourself in the room for a bit?"
"No! No!--I don't need to go the room!"--Tears starting to stream down his cheeks.
Okay, take two-- Tears are wiped, smiles are propped up on our faces, I shake off the tantrum and send out as much love energy as I can muster because I believe that it translates in the photo, and click, click click several shots are taken.

Bodhi was never fully settled during the shoot. We actually have several shots of Kim and I sitting at the tree with Butch, Bodhi's legs in a dash in front of us darting out of the frame. I joked with Kim that we should have put that photo on our cards this year.

We always try to share our best with our friends and family. We try to choose photos that capture the essence of the love we feel for each other and those we are sharing the images with. The tantrums, the fights between siblings, and the dark moments of fear, anger and stress never make the final cut even though they too have made up part of the time that has passed during the year. We all want to shine, and so we should, for that is our true essence. But we also must take the time to reflect on all the moments that have gone by. Even the dark moments, if viewed properly, provide fertile soil for growth. I am reminded of the Buddhist teaching, that the deeper the mud the more glorious the lotus blossom. And vinters know that distressed vines produce some of the most interesting and wonderful grapes. Of course, we don't want to live in the mire, just learn the lesson and move on.

Jonathan Larson, in his Tony Award winning musical "Rent", reminds us that 525,600 minutes make up a year. He asks, "How do you measure the year in a life?" As the year comes to a close and we get these wonderful picture cards from loved ones, it's a good time for us think about our back stories and reflect on the moments that made up the year. What have we learned? Were we courageous in the face of fear? Did we experience as much joy as we could have? Have we forgiven ourselves for any missteps? Have we been as loving as we possibly could?

Let's measure 2009 in love.

Happy Holidays Everyone!