I take pictures of everything, and multiple versions of most things. I’m not a photographer by any means, although every once in a while I get lucky and capture something breathtaking or unique.

I like to think the digital camera was invented just for me.  My desire to take numerous pictures from different angles began a long time ago.

We were on vacation in New York City, I was 13 and I took picture after picture of the Statue of Liberty.  I think that may have been the only thing on the roll of film.  I couldn’t help myself, I was fascinated with the various angles, shadows, and reflections.  To me she looked different with every click of the shutter.

That desire hasn’t changed, thankfully it’s affordable since I don’t have to get film developed.  It’s not unusual for me to take 100 pictures or more in a single day. Many of them are different points of view of the same object, while some are just random to help me remember a particular place or time.

My kids take it in stride. Although I’d bet money they roll their eyes when I’m not looking, especially when I stop and take pictures of a pile of shoes or a stranger in a parking lot. I also think they take a secret pleasure in repeating the words they heard over and over during their childhood.

“Ahem, Mom, ‘be aware of your surroundings’.  You almost got hit by a car when you stopped to take that picture.”

“There was a car? But I got a really great shot,”  I reply.

You never know when a picture might come in handy, particularly when it comes to writing.

I find that pictures help me recall details that I would otherwise forget, and sometimes they help me create stories I might not have imagined.

Through pictures I remember, how a spring rain looks through the window, the canal at sunset, and the cold winter day we discovered Philadelphia on foot.

I imagine everything from a princess in her castle with a secret garden, to the mysterious man in red shoes carrying a suspicious leather satchel. Who knows what stories they might bring in the future.

I don’t know if a picture is worth a thousand words, but it’s worth at least 200.