Sunday, April 25, 2010

Memories and Photographs

Many of the memories I have of my early childhood are based on photographs.

A photograph of me in a stroller, shirtless, crying.

A photograph of a bunch of kids at my church in Wisconsin waving palms for Palm Sunday, and I'm sitting by myself, uninterested, a palm frond hanging indifferently in my hand. That picture was in the local newspaper, The Mt. Horeb Mail, which my dad was the editor of. The picture bore the caption: "Palms don't interest Jesse L"

A photograph of me and my cousin Jason holding toy rifles and trying our best to look tough.

A photograph of me in a corduroy Osh Kosh B'Gosh suit, holding a giant zucchini, from our neighbor's garden.

A photograph of a Big Wheel parade down our sidewalk with all the neighborhood kids. I'm the leader of the pack.

A photograph of me in blue Nike spandex running pants and an oversized Kirk Gibson t-shirt, running.

A photograph of me and my brother, circa 1987, wearing our new "California" clothes: jams, checkered Vans, T & C Surf Designs t-shirts, ducktail haircuts, neon Action Sports skateboards. So cool.