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Picture Perfect

Faded photos from the late seventies are what I have as a keepsake from my mother’s second marriage. They’re pictures from the reception they had at my grandma’s house. The walls in the background are a greenish-blue with brown molding. The people in the background are all caught in mid-laughter or with cake-loaded forks about to go in their mouths. The women have big hair; one of my aunts has a huge afro that shrinks her face. The men all need a haircut, and they look hot and sweaty with their long side burns and handlebar mustaches.  I’m not sure where they got married; I’ve never asked. They look happy. My mother is wearing a white sleeveless satin wrap dress. Her face is youthful and plump. Her eyes shine even in the matte finish. She is my age in the photos. My dad is in a blue polyester suit. His smile is bright. He looks at my mother with love in his eyes. They looked happy.

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