A Surprise Party

This past Sunday my sister visited us for brunch.  I cooked and then we went for a walk to the local playground. We hung out there for a while and then went home.  That was when an incredible thing happened: I was given a surprise birthday party. 

If you know me, you know that I LOVE my birthday. I love everything about it, the gathering of friends, the well wishes and of course the cake. I feel deeply grateful to be alive every year and I love celebrating that. But a surprise party - wow!!! That takes the feeling to a whole other level. It was incredible. 

And that got me thinking about surprises - how they feel and what they bring up for us. After feeling the adrenal rush from the surprise, I was, of course, happy and filled with gratitude. A surprise party forces presence. You are with your feelings in that moment. And everyone attending is with you in that moment, those feelings, as well. It is a pretty miraculous thing.

A couple of the kids there had never been to a surprise party.  They were riveted and excited. Even my son, who is pretty cool most of the time, said, "Mind Blown, Mom." 

I wondered how could we prepare our kids for such quick gear shifts, when surprises come in the form of parties, or other unexpected events. Is there some way to teach our children ease and peace in these kinds of situations? And at the same time how do we encourage the fun and exuberance that they feel naturally? 

Most of all, and my surprise party was still another way to reinforce this lesson, we need to teach our children that the passage of time is important and meaningful, as is the ability to be present to experience the moments that mark, and make our time together. 

It is truly incredible that we get to be here every new year, celebrating, and it is my birthday wish that we continue to do so, by sharing our stories and documenting our lives, together. 

What Family Videos Do You Wish You Had?

When I talk to people about Portraits The Move, they get excited and interested about what we do. They often will say “What a great idea!” or “How did you come up with that?” I always laugh and feel grateful about the sleepless nights that led me to the brainstorm that is now our company. 

When I explain the thoughts, values and intentions behind what we do, people always begin to tell me what type of work they think we should create.  I love hearing about this. My mind is open, I love brainstorming and even more love learning about what is most meaningful to you. 

Very often, people express a desire to document their parents or grandparents with their children. At this age, the sense that time is rushing by is powerful. There is a need to slow it down and to savor. We completely understand this desire. And we have listened in creating our first grandparent video.

We want to make more of these. We want to be present for the wisdom of grandparents and the sheer delight of seeing them interact with our children. We love the celebration of it and the legacy we get the privilege of preserving. Like all of our work, we feel like it is a gift to witness and we feel grateful to have this company and to do this work.

We want to know what else YOU would like us to create? What would be meaningful to you? What videos of your family do you wish you had? Let us know and we’ll come up with a plan together.  It would be our joy to do so. 

xo,

Susannah