A moment in time. Grainy. Colors faded.
There's something I just LOVE about this one and it warms my heart.
I'm around two years-old in this picture, steadied by my father, with my two older brothers at my sides.
Each one of us is holding onto someone different....almost like a human chain. So very sweet and innocent.
It's hard to believe my dad was 47 when this was taken. And we would plant petunias in that same tire basket year after year.
But a happy family photograph can't mask what will come afterwards.
My, my--how everyone in this picture has fallen since then.
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16 comments:
I have a ton of old pictures like this and I think the same thing. We've all grown up so differently and aren't a close family at all. I wonder what happened and when the unravelling began.
I've checked the posts labeled "Family," and I find one about your father and none about your brothers. Maybe it's none of our business how they have fallen, but you have piqued my curiosity. Obviously you're under no obligation to satisfy it.
I will say everybody falls in some ways, so I won't tell you you haven't. I will say, though that the Dean Grey I know from this blog is a fine man, and fallen is not how I would think of characterizing you. I know you're disappointed that your art career hasn't developed as you had hoped to this point, but there is still plenty of time, so hang on to your hopes.
Your post just begs for questions to be asked, but I'll politely mind my own business. Happy Belated Birthday... life's what you make it!
Everything changes.
My heart is touched as I read your post and see the picture. Through the last couple of years I have caught a glimpse of the tender, thoughtful and loving person you really are. Plant some Petunias this Spring, remember, you love plants (there is a message there)! Make you own memories that you can hold on to and grow and bloom like those flowers that make the world a brighter place. You are doing that, You!
Oh, Dean... I don't know what to say.
You forgot to mention the "alike" shirts. Who took this picture?
Isn't there any way of putting this picture back together? It's a shame that this is gone.
I have pictures like this where I look at myself and my family and they bely the undercurrents of home life or the interpersonal dynamics that would flower from those days. I find myself looking at a younger me and wondering whaever happened to me - had I known then what I know now about then next twenty, thirty, forty years would bring, could I have made this far, or would I have quit and ended my life thinking that enduring those years would be bearable for me.
That said, I now the answer. Getting through those rough years paid off for me because I finally found the happiness I was so desperate for when I stopped looking for it and gave it a chance to find me instead. Its like the day that I stopped yearning for a 1965 Impala convertible like we used to have, and instead found the joy in knowing that loving the beltline as it swoops up and across the body was a gift enough.
When we stop looking for more than we have, and learn to be greatful for what we can give instead, wonderful things happen for us and to the people around us. (BTW I still yearn to win the lottery, but that is my struggle to bear ;-)
Oh, Dean, NOT everyone in the picture has fallen! ;-) I love the innocence (perfect word) of all photos. And while we can't know the trials that we will face, we are generally poor at figuring out the possibilities, too. And the possibilities never disappear.
Bouncin' Barb!
You got it exactly.
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naturgesetz!
Since this blog is about me and my art I try to keep my other family members out of it, especially those that are still alive.
It's their story to tell, not mine.
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sMacThoughts!
Let's just say everyone in that picture became increasingly dysfunctional as time went on.
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LightChaser!
It does indeed, Dave.
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Stan!
I shall plant some petunias this year!
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Phoenix!
Thanks for that.
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JuJu!
What were my parents thinking dressing us all alike!
I found pics of my mom and oldest aunt in those same scenes so it was probably one of them that took this photograph.
And if you're referring to putting us as a family back together, well, anything is possible.
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Ask the Cool Cookie!
I will try to be more grateful for what I already have!
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Randy!
So then there's always a possibility for something better, huh?
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All of your kind words are greatly appreciated!
-Dean
It warms my heart too....even if I am but a stranger. :)
But old pictures are always bittersweet, aren't they?
Hi Dean. I'm back after a long time. I'm sorry I couldn't return at a happier moment. Nevertheless, that's life and we are all just wishful souls. But the pic is really nice and you look very cute in it.
Do you talk about about your Brothers much?
Jason!
I don't consider you a stranger!
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Ekan!
So happy to hear from you again!
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Mind Of Mine!
Ian, no I haven't because I want to protect my brothers and their privacy.
But one day I may talk more about my past and include bits about them.
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Thanks to the three of you gentlemen for stopping by!
-Dean
I don't think you have fallen. I think you have been kicked down. You keep getting up. That says something positive.
Dean!
It feels like I've fallen many times.
-Dean
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