Since I was a child, I've always loved them. At home, we have a big wooden box filled with at least hundred photo-albums from the analog era. Many of the pictures taken by my mom, as she travelled the world. Others taken by both of my parents, telling the story of my early years, mostly without any clothes and a big smile on my chubby face. I'm not -and never was- that kind of person who is afraid of being on pictures, but neither am I that kind of person who always looks good on it (although I wish I was). As a child, I liked to make funny faces or show how tough I was. Later, I had those nights with my girlfriends where we played models (because which girl hasn't?), taking pictures with our hands folded into a square, or, if we were lucky and the parents were progressive, with a digital camera. And today isn't any differently. When I'm at a party and some photographer passes by, I'll never doubt to ask a picture with the friend who's standing closest to me. The walls of my room are covered with hundreds of pictures of me and my friends, living unforgettable moments.

I not only love being on pictures, I also really like watching them.  Whenever I'm in a bookstore, there's a big chance you'll find me in the photography area, looking through the first portfolio I've found. If I lived in a big city, I would spend my sunday afternoons in expositions of known or unknown photographers. As I don't, I often spend my afternoons going through the albums from that wooden box, always hoping that I'll find a hidden one that I've never seen before. 

Next to being on them or watching them, I adore taking them. Because in that same big wooden box, you'll find some small albums taken by myself, on school-journeys in primary school or on summer camps. You know, those kind of hazy pics of your childhood friends in front of the entrance of some theme park, quickly shot with a disposable camera. Luckily, my skills changed a bit. 

What also sparked my love for it, is the fact that my dad was a photographer. At least, he had studied photography and had been working some time as a photographer, but life turned out differently for him. But still, he loved pictures. He had (and I guess he still has them, because he isn't someone who easily throws things away) two beautiful analog camera's, which could take wonderful pictures with lovely vivid colors, making that typical click-sound when he took a shot.  

The people who know me closely, will be able to tell you that I have the habit of taking pictures all the time. Ever since I got a smartphone, this only got worse. I don't have any games on my phone, but I have tons of apps to edit pictures, use a fisheye-lens, make panorama's, and so on and so forth. I can spend hours re-watching, re-editing or re-sizing them. I'm very active on social media, especially on Instagram. 

But a couple of days ago, I was on a festival taking a picture of some beautiful little lights, when a good friend told me that I sometimes should keep moments for myself. And in that specific moment, he was totally right, because it was a magical one. 

Despite I really believe that pictures tell a story, and that I like to have lots of stories -about my own life or about people and places in the world-, it made me realize that you can't capture everything. Some stories can't be told, but only felt by our hearts. 

And I guess that's what triggers me, that although you can watch pictures and feel the happiness the moments gave you when shot, you can never truly relive them. Because pictures aren't time machines, and neither is your mind.