The Pictures and The Words

I've been editing a lot of short video packages--on news, on health, on entertainment, on business. I like the way that I can match the photos and videos to the words. It brings to life something that starts out as just a series of well-crafted sentences.
 
I've also been doing a lot of texting. It is an easy way for me to keep in touch with my kids and others when life is getting crazy. Often, it's just messages like "I'm on the bus" or "I'm home," which I appreciate. But every once in a while, there's a photo--of a happy face, or a place visited, or a baked good being created. Suddenly, in a tiny little thought bubble on my screen, I am transported to another place. I am where I am, but for just a moment, I am able to be somewhere else, sharing in the moment that I am missing. A picture is a powerful thing.
 
As an editor, I am grateful when the pictures, moving or still, match up with the story. As a person, and as a parent, I am immensely grateful when the pictures provide a window into events I have to miss, into the lives of people I don't see nearly enough, into the life that is happening outside my little edit room and beyond my narrow view. The pictures may make me sad not to be there, but they also make me happy that I can still be a part of something from a distance.
 
I may not be able to be everywhere every minute, but give me a picture or a video (or even an emoticon or two!), and at least in some way, I'm right there.