Tommy's Hatred of Pictures

While my Annie was in Minnesota, Tommy showed that he was going through another phase, much like that a number of males in our family experienced. He refused to give a serious pose for a picture, unless my Annie was very sneaky and caught him by surprise. Clowning in front of a camera was nothing new in our family photo albums.

It's a family tradition.

I remember my father doing that in pictures when he was in high school, and I remember my mother telling me that he would do that.

Cles did it continually, and now Jack does it too. Seldom do we find a photo opportunity for any male member of my family, but I'm not any different. I feel very self-conscious in front of a camera, and I always felt that way.

I remember my government teacher in high school bringing in a camera to film a class. I think it was one semester Psychology course. The principal ran the camera and stuck the thing toward me at least a dozen times. I could have crawled out of there on my hands and knees. I covered my face at least a dozen different ways.

My reaction was probably some sort of experiment. I hope it didn't mean I was potentially some sort of deviant or something.

But as for Tommy, he is a cute kid.

There is no doubt about that fact. My only problem is watching my grandchildren grow up to be eventual teens.

Jack just turned seven, and Tommy will soon be there too when frogs begin their serenades in the North Country of Minnesota--a time when I hope we can visit one more time.

And I don't know why I like to hope the grandchildren will stay young, because there are advantages about their getting older. They remember specific things about adults, and hopefully my grandchildren will remember me: the Pop Pop who howled while playing the black and white version of Lon Cheney's Wolfman and growled and bit at their arms.

I hope that they will laugh at that when they get older. I thought it to be funny at the time, but my Annie found no humor in it, when our little Anna screamed in the night, yet she still loves her Pop Pop.

And I hope they remember the road trips and the other adventures. I keep thinking that Tommy will remember sitting with me in a theater in Minnesota any time he sees the new version of Star Trek, and I also hope that he and Jack and Anna will think of me whenever they see the classy Japanese animation films like Spirited Away or Howl's Moving Castle or Castle in the Sky or Kiki's Delivery Service or Porco Rosso.

Then there's always the memories of Pop Pop sitting with three grandchildren sitting on each side of him and on his lap in an easy chair while watching any of the six Star Wars films.

The smiles and joy he feels still make the pictures fun, and it is a reminder to me and to Jack just how badly we want to see all of them in Minnesota as soon as possible. The pictures are moments of time--small glimpses of moment of fun that Jack and I missed.

We won't do that again.

I figure that these pictures also show that Grannie Annie and Pop Pop are in another phase of life too. We both would have screamed in panic at the view of a little one leaping from bed to bed, but I guess grandparents are not grandparents if they don't let their little ones have a "little fun" now and then.

I figure I will make sure that "solo" trips never happen again, because I want to be able to have fun with all my grandchildren, and I want to have my Annie there too.

I want be there to show off my light saber moves. I want to be there to watch movies. I want to be there to go to the library or to parks or to watch them enjoy rides at Mall of America.

But most importantly, I want to be there to howl like a wolf during the black and white Wolfman movie.