The Christmas gift that made me cry
We sat at MeMe’s house in a room full of love and warmth. The conversations were flowing while the kids were running around jumping in and out of huge cardboard boxes that took over any open floor space that was remaining! That pretty much paints the picture of MeMe’s house on Christmas Eve. Except, add to that my cousin Jenna reading T’was the Night Before Christmas, my aunts leading us in Christmas carols and then getting half way and realizing none of us know the words ;) (but we continue anyway), Santa arriving and the little ones mouth wide open AMAZINGNESS filling the room with joy! That might paint an even clearer picture for you! ;) It is pretty much magical!
Can you see where we get our magical excitement from?!? ;) You are never too old to BELIEVE! ;) Thank you MeMe! ;)
Every year, we exchange names and have a huge gift exchange where every family takes the “hot seat” and opens their gift in front of everyone! It is always so special to be able to see the excitement on everyone’s faces as they give their gifts and watch each other open them! This year, when it came time for us to be in the “hot seat” Mike came over and handed us our present from he and Jessie (unfortunately Jessie wasn’t able to join us because she was in NC celebrating with her family, but we knew she was there in spirit!). As we started opening the gifts one by one, we realized that they put together a little film developing kit for us!
Side note: Mike and his family created their very own dark room in their home. They have such a special appreciation for photography and the art that can often get lost in the “digital age!” When we were down in NC visiting with Jessie and Mike and photographing their engagement session, Mike showed us his collection of old film cameras that he had collected! Seriously, we were in awe and so energized by his passion and appreciation of these old cameras! Mike and Jessie frequent antique stores often and every once in awhile find a gem of a camera! Even if it is not working, Mike will bring it home and give it some love to bring it back to life!
So, we open each gift… chemicals, an empty bottle, random supplies needed to develop film using coffee (so cool!), a roll of film… (At this point, the whole family is looking at us saying what in the world is that!?!?) and then I reach in and pull out a beautiful leather case holding a gorgeous antique 35mm film camera! Enter the tears. Seriously, it hit me like a ton of bricks! I was so excited about the idea of diving in and developing film because that is something that Ryan and I have talked so much about wanting to experience one day that I was blown away when I opened the camera.
Ahh! The tears rolled down my face (as they are as I write this!) and I literally was speechless. I looked at Ryan and could see his eyes start to fill with tears. Normally when I am speechless he fills in my blanks… but in that moment, we were both at a loss for words! As soon as I was able to compose myself and actually speak, I tried to explain it to the whole family who watched me lose it and couldn’t figure out why I was so emotional (besides the Lorson genes that make me that way! ;) I mean, they knew we liked photography, but why the tears?!? ;)
I still don’t think I can put it into words, but I will try. When Mike and Jessie asked us to photograph their wedding, they asked for something special. They asked that we photograph at least part of their wedding using a film camera. Their dream was to have at least 1 roll of film from their wedding that they could develop together as husband and wife! How incredibly AMAZING is that!?!? I grew up using my mom’s old 35mm SLR camera. However, it has been forever since I have actually used it! Mike and Jessie were definitely challenging us, but believe me it was a challenge that we could not have been more excited to accept! Knowing that Jessie and Mike are going to have the experience of developing a roll of their own wedding photos is so exciting and so much fun to even think about! We feel so blessed to be able to give them that gift and the experience of creating a memory from their memories!
The way that Jessie and Mike appreciate photography is inspiring to us! We are completely guilty of taking the processing of photography for granted with the “digital age.” There is so much that goes into it and as photographers we definitely do appreciate that! We could not be more excited to pick up that old 35 mm and challenge ourselves to learn more about our craft!
Here’s the other thing that hit me… this camera was manufactured in the 1950s. To think about all of the images that AMAZING piece of equipment documented and all of the memories that are still cherished to this day because of that camera is awe-inspiring! We can only imagine the smiles, laughs, tears and huge life moments that have been viewed through that lens. And to think of the smiles, laughs, tears and huge life moments that we get to add to it… ahh! That is happy!
Today, cameras are pretty much in the hands of every single person… between iphones, point and shoots, cameras on computers, ipads, and even slrs, they are everywhere and we so often take them for granted! When I hold that antique in my hand, I am reminded that it is truly something special. It is a gift with so much meaning that we appreciate more than our tears can describe! The tears that flowed were tears of appreciation, love, excitement, anticipation, and awe! They certainly overflowed with the abundance of joy from the blessings that surround us and the AMAZING appreciation for the gift that we have to be able to capture that exact moment! Ahh! We could not be more grateful. Thank you Jessie and Mike for the Christmas gift that made me cry and will forever hold a special meaning in our hearts! XOXO!