A Shared Summer

When I scroll back through my phone's photo folder,

around every August,

the same thing is always captured.

Fireworks.

From the summer exactly one year after my oldest child was born in 2016,

up until this year.

Over these ten years,

the shape of our family,

the way we live,

and the way we work,

have changed many times.

Honestly, there were more years that were tough than not.

Even so, when August comes around,

for some reason, one photo of fireworks always ends up in my folder.

There were years I watched them go off at a large venue,

and years I played with handheld fireworks in the yard.

Sometimes they weren't even real fireworks.

There were years when I didn't take a good shot.

There was even one I snapped in a hurry amidst a crowd.

Though the form wasn't always the same,

no matter what kind of year it was, I never failed to capture fireworks in a photo.

I never failed to capture fireworks in a photo.

Lining them up, ten years' worth.

Every year was completely different in content.

The venue, the form, and the way I watched them were all different depending on the year.

Even so, I had my smartphone in my hand just the same, and there were always fireworks at the end of the lens.

Perhaps for me, fireworks were

a milestone that meant

“I’ve made it this far again this year.”

Even if the contents are different, the shape is the same.

That is what has continued unchanged for these past ten years,

my "snapshot of summer."