Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Recording Moments without living Them......

The bus is waiting for people to complete boarding. It is hot and I shift uncomfortably in my seat.  My eyes are drawn to what is going on outside.  In the square, children are riding on Greek donkeys. A father follows alongside the donkeys holding a camera.  He is recording every moment of his childrens' adventure.

I know how that goes.  You want every moment of your child's life to stay in your memory. You try get as much of it as you can on film. Then, if your memory should ever fail you, you have proof that it really happened.  People say, our children grow up so quickly and now I know it's true.  I miss my baby already and he is only four.



As the bus moves off, I glance across at the two men in my life.  They are snoozing gently, man and boy, oblivious to my gaze. I produce my camera and take a photo, then a video. An elderly woman smiles at me knowingly.

It occurs to me that, like the man with the children on the donkeys, I may well be too busy recording moments to really enjoy them. At every turn, on this Greek holiday, I am taking pictures and videos, desperate not to miss anything. But by doing this, am I really able to enjoy what is happening in the moment?

Are we so busy recording events, that we don't actually  get to enjoy living them?  Do we just live the moment over and over later, as we watch the recording back?  Is that when we actually notice things we didn't 'see' at the actual event? I find it bizarre when I really think about it and yet I am compelled to do it.

As I stare out at the passing landscapes of Greece, I resolve to relax the camera and  exercise my memory!