My family and I went apple picking last week.
Armed with masks, hand sanitizer, and a couple of giant bags, we wandered around the orchard pretending we knew the difference between a cortland apple and a red empire. At times, we broke off into smaller groups and found each other by texting, “Marco! Polo!” back and forth.
We had a good time together, going home with apples, fresh corn, apple cider, and some giant sunflowers.
While in the sunflower patch, the stalks and petals high over our heads, one would think we’d feel claustrophobic. Rather, it was peaceful, standing under the shadows of the tall sunflowers, listening to honeybees around, and taking a few minutes just virtually cut off from the rest of the world.
Emerging from the sunflower fields, my sister, cousins, and I were next to a smaller field, the sunflowers there not quite as tall. We paused, our teen cousins marching up and down the rows to find the perfect angle for a photo op.
Larger sunflowers in hand, smaller flowers dancing beside them with the wind, their eyes crinkled as they smiled behind their masks for the phone cameras.
The pumpkin patch was the next photo site. One cousin scoured the patch for a chosen pumpkin to be a prop before kneeling down next to a pile, angling her face at the camera while the sunlight beat down from the side.
My sister and I were patient, enjoying the outdoor air while being amused at our cousins’ dedication to helping each other get Instagram-worthy pictures.
I missed the Instagram train by a couple of years, never understanding why folks would wish to snap pictures of everyday moments to share with strangers. Back when I was on Facebook, I felt the same about people who updated their statuses on the daily.
Who cared that you had just finished up the laundry?
Why would you tag yourself at a restaurant?
Who wants to see pictures of your food?
Granted, I never begrudged anyone who enjoyed updating their social media. It just personally wasn’t for me.
Yet, seeing my cousins take the time to just be in the moment, to find something worth documenting to send to their friends and—yes—strangers to help brighten up their days just a bit brought a smile to my face.
The past few weeks have been rife with stress, the virus and election looming over our heads. Reveling in the quiet moments allowed us to just breathe, to just exist right then and there.
If someone is still able to see something good about today’s world, something good enough to document for social media, then that’s fantastic. We could all see those little moments more often.