Tuesday, July 15, 2014

In defense of selfies

    I have a confession..... I take selfies and not just one or two but more than I should admit. And to the horror of my teenage children, I post them on Facebook and Instagram.   But truly I think selfies are getting a bad rap and I would like to throw out a bit of perspective.   
    I am a mom  to 5 wonderful people between the ages of 13 and 33. I spent their baby and younger years asking them to "Look at Mom" so I could capture moments with my little cameras.  I would then throw the film rolls in a drawer/take the rolls to be developed and when the envelope of new pictures came home, I was nowhere to be seen.  All those photos of my children as they rambled through life. But.....rarely are there pictures of me with my kids or family.  Or me at all  because as the mom, I was the taker of the pictures.  And this is how it was until the smart phone with a reversible camera came into existence and the selfie was born.
    I admit that I like documenting not only the life and events of people I love, but, I like documenting the fact that I am here too.   
   Decades slipped by and I have little photographic evidence that I was around but thanks to smart phones, social media and selfies. that has changed and I'm not sorry.  It's okay to be the one who take the picture that says "I am here... this is me"....A selfie allows us to do just that.  So celebrate your good hair days, share your new shirt you love and capture yourself doing what you love with who you love. And if by chance it embarrasses your kids just a little bit....even better. 

<3 Barbara

p.s. if you want to follow my Instagram and see my world and work I am at @Thewildflower57




5 comments:

  1. Well said, Barbara! :)
    Hugs and keep up the great posts!
    Julie

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  2. I too was a mom behind the camera. There are very few photos of me and my small children. I was talking about this very thing to my family last weekend. Sheesh!
    Keep taking those selfies, Barbara. I I got have to do a few more selfies too. Selfie mom's unite!!

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    Replies
    1. YES! It's not about perfection or ego, it's about celebrating and sharing a life lived happy

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  3. I would guess you weren't alone in being the "missing mom" in the family photos. I'd take more if I knew the secret of making them look natural -- I have a knack for capturing my worst features. Blechh. Yours, on the other hand, make me want to sit down and have a cup of coffee with you!

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