"I lost my Mother, on the 26th of March 2000 in a tragic accident.
I was going through photographs in order to put together something for the funeral – as you do. One of the things that overwhelmed me was the fact that although we were incredibly close and had much in common, I had only 3 photographs of her and I together over almost 30 years and certainly none that portrayed the essence of our special relationship. Even the one’s we did have portrayed how others saw us and not how we would have seen ourselves. I could vividly picture the photo I most wanted. Just our heads, wet from swimming, in Church Bay up north in Tutukaka, fresh from a morning swim on the millpond smooth water. I would have given anything to have her back for the 10 minutes it would have taken to capture that photograph.
I believe Women in particular are notoriously bad at having photos taken. We never think we look good, we never feel attractive, we always prefer to hide that feature or part of us we don’t like. It takes a moment to record something special like the bond between a Mother and her child and yet we just don’t make the time to do it. And we should. We should capture on film how we feel about the people we love. Because when they are gone, they are gone for good and the opportunity is lost forever.
If I had had a photo taken every year with my Mum since I was born, a special shot that reflected us as we were at each stage, then when I lost her I would have had 29 photos to show my daughter and to share with her – the relationship I had with my Mum.
Grab a camera, record your memories, and celebrate the people you love."
Jo Malcolm, Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand.
"48 hours after our son Jasper was born, I got talking with a great person in a Newmarket cafe. We chatted about her daughter and my brand new gorgeous son.
She told me a true story about herself and her mother that explains the very essence of why Cindy and I created Photolicious.
Jo Malcolm has kindly let us share her story with you".
Read Jo's story below...
