Nostalgia

My father and I email each other almost every day. Today he included some lovely family photos that make me feel nostalgic, and both happy and sad at the same time. Happy because they are pictures of people whom I love dearly, and sad because many of these people are gone and I miss them terribly. But mostly happy. :o)

This is a photo from my parents' wedding day, June 8, 1968, in Cherry Hill, NJ. From left to right, we have my maternal grandmother (Ruth Elizabeth, but she went by Betty), my maternal grandfather (Elmer Glenn, but he went by Glenn), my cute mom, all of 21 years old, my cute dad, all of 26 years old, and his parents, Mattie and Earl. My dad's parents were old enough to be the parents of my mother's parents. If that makes any sense at all. In this picture, you see a clue as to why this blog is called The Frog and the Daisy - daisies were Mom's favorite flowers. I will also have you know that the month after my parents were married, my mother's wedding dress was on the cover of Modern Bride. Good taste runs in the family. ;o)

I adore this picture. In the middle is my grandmother Mattie with her sisters, Gladys (on the left) and Minnie Lee, who we called Aunt Sis. My grandmother was the youngest - Gladys was born around 1891, Sis around 1894, and my grandmother in 1899. This picture was taken around 1974 or so - get a load of those outfits! The Hardesty sisters were stylin', no? The sisters were long-lived: Grandma lived to be 84, Aunt Gladys lived to be 91, and Aunt Sis lived to be 96! I hope I take after them.

Here's my dad. This was probably taken around 1978 or 1979. He made that guitar himself. He still has it, and it's really pretty. He has also made a few dulcimers, one of them for me. I should really practice it - it sounds positively lovely. I used to go to sleep to the sounds of my father playing his guitar. That too was lovely.

I so value photos. They take me back to places that have been buried in my memory for such a long time. It's easy to forget how dark my Dad's hair was, or what my Aunt Gladys looked like, or how my grandma looked when she smiled. Photos help me hang on to people longer than real life did. I can look at the first picture and see my mom healthy and pretty and smiling and happy. I can see three sisters, still together after 80+ years. And that's good.