these are the things i can't capture with a camera

There are days when I realize that there are some moments in my life that I will never be able to capture with a camera.  There are days when I just decide to put the camera away and enjoy the moment, rather than make sure the light is perfect. 

Take tonight for example.  I was giving my three youngest siblings a bath.  I scrubbed leftover temporary tattooes off little arms, and wiped water out of blinking eyes.  This, I thought, I cannot capture with a camera.  I can't bottle the laughter, the smiles, the overall joy of this night. 

I can't replace any of those memories with a photo.  I just can't.  I can tell you in words, but the memory that I have will remain, telling me just exactly how it really was.

I will laugh at our kitten sitting on the ledge of the bathtub throughout the bathtime.  He got splashed and poked and knowcked off,  but he climbed back up and kept watch over us.

I will smile and maybe someday cry over the faces my baby sister made.  I will always, always, always remember the way she looked up at me every few minutes to make sure I was still there.  When she was reassured, an innocent, contented smile lit her face. 

These aren't things that I can photograph.  In fact, these aren't even things that most of you care about.  But to me, I take comfort and joy in the fact that there are just some things you can't capture with a camera.  These are the memories that will last - the ones that I can only remember in my head.  Isn't it exciting to think that sometimes, we just need to revel in the moment instead of worrying about capturing the moment?

*Just to show you what I mean, I stopped writing this post so I could go have a dance party with the whole family.  We were dancing to Disney songs and having a lot of fun!  I don't have any pictures of that, but it was one of the best weeknights I've had in a long time!*