I make three different family calendars every year: one for my mom, one for my dad, and one for my grandmother. They have to be different because my parents are long-divorced.
I put pictures taken of my dad’s side of the family, and around his house, into his version.
My grandmother is my mom’s mom, so I include pictures from around my mom’s place, pictures of the kids, pictures of my mom, etc.
My mom’s calendar is similar, but with more pictures of my husband Jared and his dad (who is married to my mom – yes I know that sounds odd, but they’ve been married for just over a year and Jared and I have been together for almost 10 so no, I didn’t marry my step-brother). Both my grandmother and my mother hate pictures of themselves, but want pictures of each other, so there’s some swapping involved there too.
Even using a relatively easy-to-use software to make and order the calendars (I use iPhoto and have been consistently impressed with the quality of calendars and speed with which they arrive, but couldn’t recommend their regular printing service for photos), it’s a lot of work. This year, not counting the time spent over a number of evenings winnowing my favourite family photos from the year’s worth of shooting, I did one marathon session where I sat my butt down at 7:30 and did not stir until I was done after 2 am. And this is my third or fourth year of making these, so I’m much quicker than I was that first year.
It has occurred to me though, that the creation of these calendars is part of what Christmas is all about to me: family and the can’t-be-denied-but-is-so-worth-it effort it often entails. The devotion of attention required to pick out just the right pictures, the consideration of who is going to be the recipient of this particular combination, the effort to include the milestones that would be important to that person, and the effort to ensure a good balance between subjects (I try to make sure both kids are represented equally, though I put more of each one in the pictures for their birthday month), the extra few minutes it takes to ensure that the colour and contrast is right… it’s all worth the dry scratchy eyes, sore wrists and numb derriere. Physical discomfort aside, I love seeing all the best shots of the year, marvelling at how much the kids have grown since last January, and maximizing the look of each shot so it can tell its own story. And I love knowing that each month my mom, dad, and grandmother will be turning the page to marvel at fresh set of pictures of their kids/grandkids/greatgrandkids.
I bet most people have some sort of labour-of-love ritual around the holidays. Is yours photography? Baking? Feel free to share in the comments.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!
