Hi friends. Welcome back to picture. Love. This particular episode speaks to a very specific group of people. And I guarantee if it's not you, then, you know, somebody who is part of this group. And even if it's not speaking to you directly on this topic, it definitely translates to other scenarios. All falling under the umbrella of going through significant transitions in life. I've packaged this conversation towards, empowering and coming alongside of parents who are going through a divorce and want to affirm their children. And reassure them through their photos, that the love remains even if the shape of their family is changing drastically. But first here's a quick message from our sponsor. If you're looking for a trusted service that can transform tons of printed and digital pictures into something that's space conscious, beautiful, and displayed on your walls or in a legacy album on your lap, then look no further. Reminiscence by Kris LeDonne is here to serve you and your loved ones. Now you can continue to make and capture beautiful photo memories, enjoy sharing them with ease, and make new memories in the process of reminiscing You can find inspiration and a contact form at krisledonne.com or just check the show notes for a link. Now back to the show. So I have spoken to you before about, you know, the power of photos and how they can just really reattach us to special memories, special relationships, things that we want to affirm and hold on to going forward. And they can also be opportunities to revisit a pain and dismiss it, heal from it, reframe it. You, you have complete power for what you do with your pictures, but I believe that they can actually be a secret weapon to combat pain and transition. And so I'm reframing how I speak about photo albums today in the context of families who have gone through or are going through divorce and specifically those with children. So if you will just indulge me in a moment, whether you have or are experiencing that scenario. You certainly know somebody who has, because divorce has become something that we speak more openly about, and it's more socially addressed and acknowledged. And there's trauma involved in going from one family unit To a new one. And there's always a reason behind it. I'm not here to judge or justify or condemn. I'm just here to come alongside of humans who are dealing with the pain of a drastic transition like this one. You may translate it to another transition, but specifically the joy of an album made for each child involved in that divorce to remind them that. They are loved. They are worthy. Their story is worth remembering. And even though the shape of their family is changing, that doesn't mean the love goes away. It just looks a little bit differently./ So the pages I'm referring to in this album, I mean, it can date back before the marriage, if this is true. Is a child or children who were born before the wedding, you can, it doesn't matter where the album starts, but it shows a progression of affirming images to express from parent parents to child children that they are loved no matter what. And that we don't have to account for the pains. We can account for the joys that help the pain heal. You can have images of them with siblings, with pets, with each parent, maybe focusing on pictures of that child or those children with each parent individually. Because I don't know about you, but both of my parents weren't in all of my pictures. Usually one of them was taking them as a child and now as an adult, even so, yes, I'm fortunate I have my parents together, but they're not both in every photo. So in order to frame it as we both love you, one parent on one side. One parent on the other of a two page spread, it lets them feel connected and grounded in the roots that still remain, even if the housing and the addresses. Change. Are you following me so far?/ I'd, I'd like to share a story, not about divorce, but about affirming a child. So I've been an album maker most of my adult life. I fell in love with making albums and putting my memories on pages to have and hold in my lap 30 years ago. I've made more albums than I can count for people or coach them on how to do it themselves. I've run crop camps with kids who would come and crop their pictures and put them in albums. And I've served parent adults the same way. But one standout memory for me was on a Mother's Day, when my mother presented me with a tiny little album of me as a child, and she did it for the purpose of showing my girls what their mommy was like as a child. Now, while that is a different scenario, the purpose of the story is to share with you how affirmed I felt. There were photos in there. I'm not sure I remember ever seeing before they were on these pages. There were captions there about what my mom imagined I was thinking based on the messy face or the look on, on my face, or the fact that I was trying to, as a toddler, put on her pantyhose. My point is they were beautiful and messy and wonderful, and they are a tangible reminder of the love that she has for me and to pass that on to my children and my dad makes cameo appearances as well. It was very much a mother daughter album, but my dad is, making, many appearances in those pages. So again, Both of my parents really, I don't think are in on any of the pages together, but they're both there as part of my story, my one story with my multiple family members and pets. And it is priceless. I scanned it and reprinted it as a digital book to give mom. Some of those pictures back and to be able to insure it, because if something were to happen to the actual original, I would cry desperately, but I would be also grateful that I can reproduce it. But I digress. The point is the power of an album to speak when the words are just hard to say in person, or when that person is not present with you in the moment. Or when this child is at one parent's house and missing the other parent, this is something that can certainly soothe. Now that we've addressed how that affirms the child. Let's talk about what that does for the parents to have something done for them to give to the child or the children, because they have to be the ones to give me the photos if they want me to do it for them, or maybe I could just coach them how to do it themselves, but divorces are busy and chaotic and I'm happy to step up and do the work. They need to give me the photos. They need to give me the stories. They need to give me the names and I can compile them with compassion and love and privacy. Always privacy so that they can actually somewhat give their hearts an opportunity to either have information for healing later, or to feel the hope of an inkling of healing through the gratitude of the good that's being commemorated. Whether it's the pride of how a child is growing up, whether it's the pride of something that they built as a family, whether it is a ridiculous joke on a vacation or in the backyard, or learning how to drive with the kid in the backseat. Making noises. I don't know what the story is, but there is healing when we connect with something really beautiful. And if we're curating memories for our children to make them feel better, they're certainly going to have positive, if not at least neutral effects on ourselves. So there is a degree of healing and I can give you the comparison of writing a thank you note. To somebody for doing something kind to you. Yes, the purpose of the thank you note is to express gratitude. It's for the recipient, but the person writing the thank you note benefits as well, because it allows you to marinate in appreciation and gratitude. And those are very high vibes, which are certainly welcome at difficult times like divorce and hard transitions. So, I hope that this Framework inspires somebody to, if you have albums that are really special, appreciate them, maybe have them scanned so you can have multiple copies for multiple households, if that helps you. And if you're going through this, I think the act of regardless how many albums you have, something made at this stage in life is surely heart medicine for the children affected, but also for the parents who are making the necessary changes to move forward as more whole, well versions of themselves, which does benefit the children, even if the child doesn't want it./ I hope that this talk only tugs on heartstrings in a loving way. I hope it illuminates with inspiration and love because that's where it comes from. Never any judgment. And if this is something that you feel like you need, or there's somebody that you think needs this kind of inspiration, please share this episode. I'm going to- in the show notes offer a contact form to get more information or to get connected, for one of these transition appreciation, affirmation albums, whatever name you wish to give it. And more than anything, I hope that this conversation helps you picture love more deeply in more satisfying ways in your day. Thank you. I'll see you next time.