“A portrait is not made in the camera but on either side of it.” -Edward Steichen

August 1966. Rockport, Ma.

Me and my Papa sitting side by side in lawn chairs in our back yard. My favorite photo. My favorite memory. I loved to do this as a little girl, and as a grown woman.

My father passed in 2013 at the age of 90, but some of my best and richest memories belong to the last 5 years of his life.

He lived in a beautiful assisted living facility where I went to see him and sit beside him every day. Often times we sat just like this, outside, in the beautiful gardens, side by side, watching airplanes and birds and trees changing color.

Sometimes he’d share a memory, a story or a song. Sometimes we just sat in quiet.

But always, just as when I was a little girl, sitting beside my father filled me with the greatest sense of peace, acceptance and love like I will never know again.

He was a kind and humble man who taught me to admire beauty in the world around me, to live in the moment and to accept the blessings God gives you. For that I am forever grateful.

I will forever cherish this photo and those memories of sitting beside him both as a little girl and as a grown woman.

And thanks to my beautiful mama for all the beautiful photos. ~shared by @anniedez