As I look around at the mound of clean clothes waiting to be folded on the sofa, the scattered toys on the floor and the haphazardly hung toddler paintings, I feel both a swell of joy and a nag of self doubt. These two feelings have become so closely intertwined these last few years, they’ve become official bffs. I am digging deep to find love for the relationship between these besties, joy and self doubt. In practicing this, I’ve come to think of my home as a time capsule. When I take a step back and photograph my home the way it is, with its messes and mounds of clothes, I see it with fresh eyes. I see that the scuff marks and the art made by tiny hands are inextricable. They are both unavoidable and necessary elements within these walls.

Maybe messes themselves can be beautiful, representing the chaos and vigor of life. 

Our homes are more than a collection of things, they’re the embodiment of the people who breathe, eat, live, create and imagine there. The treasure of photographing your family in your home is preserving this tiny slice of life. The nostalgia for looking back will encompass it all, the breath taking beauty of the well worn pages of your every day life. Let’s embrace it, take out our cameras and preserve the memories of the ways in which we live. 

Maybe seeing our homes through this more gentle framework also enables us to see ourselves this way as well, beautiful both despite and because of our flaws, a perfect time capsule for this and every day. This home is not perfect, but people love here, they’re safe here, growing and learning to find joy and contentment in the beauty of existing in the ordinary moment. 

Read more musings on preserving memories through the art of photography here.

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