What's your favorite picture of you?
My favorite picture of me is from when I was 11 or 12. In the picture it is late spring and I am standing, holding onto the halter of the horse I had just bought. I am in jeans and a denim jacket. It's a picture I've held tightly over the years - proof of how cute I used to be.
Today I read this very moving piece called "Why Your Friends Like Your Least Favorite Pictures." Seriously, go read it. My blog will wait.
Okay, back? That article first made me think about my son's girlfriend. I have two favorite pictures of her, both from when they went to prom. In one picture, she has her arms around his waist and her face is scrunched up in a silly affectionate bunch that just makes me hear the word "squeeeeeeze!" In the other, her head is back, her eyes are closed, and her mouth is open in hilarious laughter. I am guessing of the scores of pictures we took that day, those two are probably very low on her list. She's a really beautiful girl and there are plenty of other pictures of her in more composed states.
But I love those two, because they capture one of her best qualities - a very real part of her. Some of the uninhibited joy in her jumps right out of the picture and tickles me every time I see them.
But then pondering it all further made me think of me.
My favorite picture of me - in it, I am still a child. Only a part of who I am. Nowhere close to fully developed, either physically or emotionally. Yeah, I was skinny (other than my thighs)...but I was also a child.
I have no favorite pictures of me from my adulthood, and that's because when I look at them, I only see what I don't like. I have different objections to different pictures: bad hair, bad skin, bad fashion, dumb expressions, and always too many pounds.
That's wrong. I don't have a handle on how to get me from where I am to a place where I can like my own picture, but I am pretty sure that it's not only a losing-enough-weight proposition.
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