Why Sundays?

I send a newsletter to my lovely email list every Sunday. I doubt anyone has ever wondered why Sunday. But there is a reason and I think you will appreciate it.

Growing up, Sundays were for the beach. From as early as I have memory I remember packing the old canvas beach bag, the blue cooler, windsurfing gear, and hopping in my dad’s rusty salty sandy station wagon to drive to Sapphire or Bluebeard’s or Vessup Beach.

Aside from simply being idyllic, my parents created a ritual that would last well beyond those beach Sundays. To this day, Sundays feel different to me.

For over ten years now I have worked jobs that have no regard for weekends. In fact, I now work more on the weekends than not. My wife’s schedule is equally odd. There is no reason that Sundays should feel special to me anymore. And yet, they do.

This is the power of ritual. I know there are books written about how things go from habit to routine to ritual and I won’t pretend to be an expert. But I do understand that rituals shape us.

At its best, family photography (my version, anyway), is an attempt to slow down and see the rituals that are present or forming within your family, the ones that are knowingly or unknowingly shaping the adults your children will become. My photographs will reflect this back to you.

In fact, I believe that having these photographs printed and lying around your house (maybe in glass print boxes like these) will help you create and perpetuate these rituals.

I want to end this by saying that my family has a long way to go towards building rituals that we love and are proud of. Through a pandemic, caretaking for a sick parent, weird work hours, a toddler, and all the other things…this is an endless challenge for all of us. But I think it is as much about the journey as the destination, so let’s keep trying 🙂