A Thousand Words
By Jock Lauterer
I’m of the opinion that the humble snapshot, given enough time, becomes a piece of priceless documentary photography. Here’s a perfect example. Tom Carson of Chapel Hill sends in this father-son “slice-of-life†photograph along with the following narrative: “Did your dad ever ask you for a bite of your favorite sandwich, cookie or brownie? Did he ever hand back anything that resembled what you handed him? Mine never did. A dad bite was invariably beyond huge and you only handed your treat over with a great deal of regret. He always handed back the little crescent of remains with the biggest of grins. Here I am, age 9, in 1968. I›m about to get worked over good. My dad took his last bite in 2010.†And Tom adds, “I think my mother did take the photo, no doubt with her trusty Kodak Instamatic, or perhaps a Brownie. This was taken in the kitchen of our house in Haddonfield, N.J. My father was Ned Carson. He was 43 at the time.â€
A THOUSAND WORDS
Do you have an important old photo that you value? Email your photo to jock@email.unc.edu and include the story behind the picture. Because every picture tells a story. And its worth? A thousand words.
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Jock,
Are you sure of the 1968 date in the “Thousand Words” picture published on January 12, 2012? I seem to remember that you were in high school (Chapel Hill HS) when I was working at the UNC Library Circulation Dept. , 1959-61 (where I worked with your Mother, Myra).