Pictures

 Thousands of little moments captured in a flash. Happy times, sad times, good times and hard times, all kept forever to be revisited at will. They hold with them emotions and memories, they can bring back the past...

 Looking at the picture you see a smiling man and smiling children, a happy father and his kids. I see the tea cups on the floor where my baby girl and I had tea with the other princesses on her little pink mat. I see the little monster truck that my son drove through our tea party with and we had to chase him away. When I stand to go, they grab my legs and I drag them across the wood floor, laughing and giggling all the way. Up the hallway to get my push up bars and down again to the living room, my son sliding off slightly (he's getting to big to be riding on dads leg).

 I try to work out a little, and end up working out a lot as first my baby, then my big boy climb onto my back and laugh as I go up and down on the push up bars. The picture is taken FLASH when I am in the up position and both kids are laughing and so happy. I do a few more, then a few with each child separately before I can't anymore. Then I roll over and grab my two wonderful kids and tickle them to stop them asking "again, again!!" I lift up my girl and we dance, and my son climbs on the couch and jumps up so that I am holding them both, one in each arm, and spinning around slowly while I sway back and forth. I spin a little faster and they laugh and yell, and then we all fall onto the couch smiling and laughing as they say "again, again!!" and I catch my breath.

 All that from a single picture, a single flash, a single moment captured in time. Looking at it now, with my kids so far away, I remember the happiness in the moment and see the smiling faces, and I can't stop the tears.