The share button

I showed one of my young friends a couple of photos that had popped up as memories on my phone. She went through them with a ‘wow’ for every photo. When she was done she said to me: “You have so many lovely photos and you have never posted them”.

My uncle Charles had so many photos. He would take photos every time. He always had a camera on him. It didn’t matter where he was or what he was doing, he would pause to take a photo if he wanted to. He knew how to capture a moment and keep it alive. I remember one trip I and a few other family members took with him, I was 12 years old then. That trip will always remain alive for me now because I stumbled upon some photos he had taken from that trip many years later and I kept one of them.

I have a bag of photos from when pictures were physical, I have lost a few of them due to bad handling and it is the reason I am grateful for digital pictures.

Last month, my friend Nguwa turned 41 and early in the morning on her birthday, I sent her some videos I had recorded at her 40th. She was ecstatic. It was like she was reliving that day again.

Every now and again I get pop up messages from google photos, reminding me of lovely moments I had captured in the past. Some of these memories make me smile, some make me ponder, others make me sad. Whatever emotion the memories evoke, I enjoy the feeling of being taken back in time.

One beautiful thing I have enjoyed from all the many photos I have taken and kept is how I get to see all the lovely moments I captured of my son in his 9 years.

You don’t always have to use the share button when you take photos or make videos. Save them to keep the memories alive.