I have six girl cousins who grew up in the same town we eventually moved to. They were my "sisters"growing up, we were always at each other houses', my mother and their mother being sisters. About ten years ago, things kind of changed and the closeness just wasn't there. This past year, their dad died. He was a different kind of man, who never got along with my dad that well, and he and I had not the greatest interaction due to something that happened about five years ago (not terrible, but enough to mar my opinion of him). Still, he was a father and husband and he is missed. Tonight, it is the eve of my aunt's birthday. The youngest sister lives in town and invited my family (mother, father, brother) and her sisters and mother over for dinner. The oldest, who lives in North Carolina, could not make it, but others from Florida, Virginia, and California have all come for a few days. We all had such a great time reliving old times, telling old stories, and having a wonderful time going through pictures. Yes, pictures. Black and white, colored, pictures that were taken at camp, the beach, Florida, of grandparents, past boyfriends, holidays...pictures....It made me wonder...will future generations have them? Will there really be memories held in small squares that prompt laughter and tears? Or will they still be on the computer and cell phones to be flashed through, not identified, not to be shared. Don't get me wrong. Tonight we were all there with our digital cameras taking pictures left and right, but I wondered who, in twenty years, will be looking at them or if they will even be there to seen.
