Photos: A Capture of Many Meaningful Moments

    Two children–one toddler-aged, one infant, both with brown eyes, black hair, and of Indian ethnicity–gone missing! Update: found caged in a blue trailer! At first glance, this photo can look like two children are trapped, especially based on our expressions. In reality, this photo was captured exactly 5,821 days ago, when I had only been around long enough to have lived 7 months of my life. My parents were always adventurous and being in their late twenties (or early thirties in the case of my dad) was not going to stop them from enjoying nature while simultaneously parenting. Thus, this photo was born: me and my brother sitting in a trailer connected to my parents’ bikes while they traveled through the neighborhood. Given the rather bland background scenery, I think our expressions are really highlighted. My brother’s face has a rather worried complexion and his arm is placed over me in a protective manner. On the contrary, my facial expression is reminiscent of any other infant: clueless and curious. Regardless, we both were merely concentrating on the photo or in my case, the flashing black object in front of my face. If seen from another perspective without any background knowledge, however, one could perceive this photo in the wrong light. Such analysis demonstrates the deceptive nature of photos and the value of paying attention to detail (wow, I should use this on the AP)! 

    Moving back to the photo, another story lies behind this seemingly simple image. The original date on the image reads 02/02/2003. At first sight, the photo left me perplexed: how could this have been taken before I was born? After asking my parents, I discovered this was due to the faulty software of the old camera and that the actual date was indeed after I was born (there’s a chance my parents could be lying to me about this–and thus my age–but, as a wise man once said, some things are meant to remain unquestioned). In recent years, this photo has been brought up again as we finally sold the old trailer after nearly 10 years of it sitting in the garage neglected. Although we have now grown up and can’t come close to fitting in the trailer, everytime we see this photo we are reminded of the past and how fast the times change. Seeing the value and fond memories each photo holds makes me regret not capturing certain moments in my lifetime. So in the future, the next time someone asks you to pose for the millionth photo of the day, smile knowing that one day you’ll be able to look back and relive each unique experience.