The older I get the more I realize that the bond I have with my grandparents is rare. Growing up, it's all I knew. I had breakfast and caught the bus from their house. Returned there on the bus after school. They rarely missed a ball game. I spent every weekday of the summer with them. Going to Hardee's for breakfast and then to yard sales and flea markets was the sum of my perfect summer day.
As time went on, I went off to college but couldn't wait to drive the two hours home on the weekend. There were many reasons but in the top of the list were Grams and Papaw. There were many nights I wouldn't get home until 10 or later, but they'd be there with the card table set up ready to get in a few games before bed. I typically had a plate of hot salmon cakes waiting or a plate of fresh homemade candy.
When 2012 came and I moved to Delaware for ministry, my Papaw hands down had the hardest time. And though the 9 hour trip was sometimes rough alone, I did it often to get to see them. I quickly saw that I talked to my grandparents on the phone as much as many did their parents. In 2014 my Papaw went to be with Jesus. I miss him dearly and would love for him to have got to meet Levi, but watching my Grams and her husband "Papaw Cotton" with him is such a joy. I try to capture moments every time we are down of him with them. There's something so special about the love that connects great-grands and the kiddos. I had that same mystical bond with some of my great-grands.
A few weeks ago we were visiting and one of the evenings we were having the family staple.... Gravy & Biscuits. I know most eat it for breakfast but it's the Cracker Barrel mentality in my family that breakfast is served all day. As she started the process I'd watched her do thousands of times, I suddenly wanted pictures of her. The more I've studied documentary photography, the more I've longed to capture images that match up to the ones etched in my brain. So I did. She thought it was kind of silly that I would take pictures of her making biscuits but I have a feeling it won't be my last time doing it.
Isn't she the cutest? She's the definition of the word grandma y'all.
What I love about this piece of ordinary with my Grams is how much it really represents what I want to take hostage in my photos. Let me try to explain.... Gravy & Biscuits has been an ordinary meal in my family for as long as I can remember. She'll make it on a random morning or any time of the day if that's what your craving. She always has the ingredients on hand. But it's also the meal that's made for many birthday celebrations and also our annual Christmas Eve gathering. It's a staple in the most simplest of gatherings or the grandest of celebrations. That's what I want for A Sweet Aroma Photography.
I want to capture mundane moments that seem so normal they'd usually never be highlighted AND I want to capture the sweetest of adventures and celebrations that we know are high points to remember. It's a privilege to freeze our family moments as a memory and it's also certainly a privilege to get to also share that passion with others.
// See more about my photography adventure here! //
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