Blooming With Grandma
Recently, I did something that brought me so much joy — I photographed my grandma.
The idea sparked after hosting a workshop with my friend Jess called Bloom Like You Mean It. We explored the idea of adornment, of seeing and being seen, of how beauty can be amplified when we slow down long enough to notice it. I left the workshop buzzing, thinking: Who do I want to adorn? Who do I want to really see? Who do I want to see ME?
The answer came instantly: my grandma.
A few days after the workshop, I called Grandma to see if she’d be open to being photographed with me, and without missing a beat, her whole energy lit up. She was elated. Then she added, almost shyly: “Would you invite your mom, too?” My heart just about burst. Three generations, all in one frame — it felt like something timeless.
So, I cleared my calendar & prepped myself for my monthly 2-hour trip back to my hometown to see Grandma, only this time, we were capturing it. I gathered flowers from my parents garden, picked up Grandma’s favorite ice cream from Taggarts and drove over to her “apartment”.
LOL….And then there was my dad. Now, he proudly claims his title as a “wedding photographer” back in the 70s. He’s got a deep love for cameras and stories — but his era was all film, not DSLR. I thought maybe, just maybe, he could pick up my gear quickly if I gave him a crash course. Spoiler alert: he couldn’t. 😂 Trying to teach him ISO, aperture, and shutter speed in my grandma’s living room was like trying to teach a fish how to ride a bike.
But honestly? That’s where the magic came in. Between us fumbling with buttons, giggling until our stomachs hurt, and finally giving up to balance my camera on Grandma’s dresser with a remote trigger — the story became less about the “perfect” photos and more about the perfectly imperfect experience.
The images we got might not win awards, but when I look at them, I see joy. I see my grandma glowing. I see the gift of saying yes to being adorned, to being witnessed. And I see myself — not as a photographer chasing technical perfection, but as a granddaughter honoring love, lineage, and a very happy Grandma.
This is what life is all about.
