One of my faults

We all have faults. Some of them bigger than others. Some we want to keep quiet, tucked away from the eyes of others. Some we don’t mind sharing. Maybe if we find someone who shares the same “fault” we are willing to share, we might feel a little bit better about “failing” in this one area of our lives. 

So today I share a fault of mine, and am hoping that someone will tell me they struggle with the same thing, fail in the same way. Of course, there is always the concern that if someone commiserates with me, I might feel less motivated to change. Or you might not commiserate with me and just think that I am really weird.

I love seeing family photographs in frames in someone’s home. The framed photographs can be hung on the walls, placed on furniture, or even stuck up on the refrigerator. The pictures tell a story of the family that lives there.

I love going into my son and daughter-in-law’s house.  They have been married 10 years this month, but have photos from their wedding still prominently displayed, along with photos of the birth of their children, days at the park, graduations… just about anything you can think of.  If you don’t know them, you can enter their house and read their story.

I, on the other hand, don’t have a lot of family photos hung. Okay, to be honest, since we moved here 3 years ago, I haven’t hung any family photos yet.  Partly, in my defense, I want a “family wall” and am gathering photos and frames and getting an idea of how I want the wall designed.  But truthfully, there are other frames that I could put pictures in that won’t be part of the “family wall,” yet those frames remain empty.

For example, I have a lovely frame in my office.  I love the style, and the color; it goes perfectly with my room.  It has a spot for 4 photographs, and it came with 3 images, meant to be replaced, I imagine.  This has been hanging in my office for 2 years and 10 months, and…………..here it comes, my confession… I have yet to place one single photograph in the frame.  Why?  I just don’t like the process of putting pictures in frames.  And then if I do want to change the photo, I don’t like taking the old picture out and having to decide what to do with it… where to store it, or file it among my other photos.

I know that sounds lazy.  But to put a photo in this frame, I would have to (1) choose what I want to put there, (2) find the photo on my computer, (3) get it printed.  THEN I would actually have to take the back off the frame, put the picture in the frame, and reassemble it.  That just seems like a lot of work to me. 

But as I type this, it IS a little embarrassing.  So maybe I’ll spend some time searching for a photo today to get printed.  Maybe.

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Comments (19)

  1. Sheila Phillips

    Oh my, I so understand! I’ve even gone so far as to make a folder on my desktop to copy my favorites to in hopes it will motivate me to get on with the printing/framing process! It seems some people have a knack for popping random photos in frames and displaying them to look so nice. The perfectionist in me is always second guessing my choices to the point of just not doing it. Knowing I have “company” in this might give me the motivation I need. Thanks for sharing!

    May 20, 2017 at 7:32 am
    • Karen

      Oh, THANK YOU, Sheila, for sharing! I’m sooooo glad I am not alone! Maybe we should challenge each other? Give a date to get one picture hung by? Want to?

      May 20, 2017 at 7:49 am
  2. Karla McCormick

    I can relate! Part of it is decision-making. Sometimes the smaller they are the harder they are to make. My sister would say it is perfectionism. You want it perfect and if you can’t get it perfect, you won’t bother at all. I can relate on both accounts. My guess is that there are MANY who can relate. In the meantime, life keeps on passing by…

    May 20, 2017 at 7:39 am
    • Karen

      I hadn’t looked at it like that, but that’s a definite possibility. I will have to think on that one…. Thanks for sharing!

      May 20, 2017 at 7:50 am
  3. Glori

    Yikes…shamefully hiding my face…I recently packed up numerous frames knowing that I probably never will get a photo in them! Picked up some pretty cool frames but in my head I never had the “perfect” photo for it. Ha…I had plenty to choose from or could probably easily have gotten one but yep, seemed like WAY too much work. I must say I am happy that many frames are no longer in my house but I still have this “ladder” frame with 5 spots for photos that still have photos in it that came with it…I’ve had it well over 5 years now! This is displayed in my great room!!! OOPS! lol

    May 20, 2017 at 8:51 am
    • Karen

      Oh, my gosh! I am in SUCH good company!!!!!!! Obviously, I totally “get” this. Thanks for sharing, Glori. I am smiling ear to ear. 🙂

      May 20, 2017 at 8:53 am
  4. Phyllis

    As you said, that frame is perfect for your office! We can’t be good at everything and you are great as so much. Why not ask your daughter in law to print 4 of her favorite photos of her, your son, and your 2 grandchildren in the correct size and mail them to you? I’ll bet it will make her smile to know that she had a hand in decorating your office.

    May 20, 2017 at 9:44 am
    • Karen

      I think that’s a great idea, Phyllis! Thanks for your feedback!

      May 20, 2017 at 9:52 am
  5. Susan

    The timing on this is so funny. About an hour ago I found a beautiful 3 photo wall frame that has been tucked away in my craft room for years. I walked around the house trying to decide where to hang it, found a great spot, but then had to decide what photos to print. Well, I tucked that baby right back away and will probably not deal with it for another few years! I totally understand, though for me it isn’t the putting the photos in, it is deciding from my thousands of photos which 3 to use. Silly thing is … if I just chose some I could easily change them out if I found something better. There is so little commitment, yet I make it out to be such a big deal. Maybe I will pull that out again and try to hang it this week. Thanks for the motivation and a chance to laugh at myself!

    May 20, 2017 at 9:52 am
    • Karen

      Well, you know that I totally understand. And you’re right…. it isn’t a big deal to change thing out if we really stop to think about it…. but still, we do what we do… which is sometimes nothing. :0 Thank YOU for the motivation! I just might have to look for a few pictures today to get printed!

      May 20, 2017 at 9:55 am
      • Vivian

        You are not alone in this fault. Like you, I love seeing them displayed in other people’s homes…so why haven’t I done it? I really have no idea nor a plausible excuse.

        May 20, 2017 at 10:46 am
  6. Cathy L Vernon

    I think we all have some of that in us! A few years ago my daughter bought me a multi-frame with the words Laugh, Love, Family on it and multiple spots for photos. I picked the spot on my wall for it, and hung it, (as is) with the “family” pics that came with it. My grand kids kept asking me who are those people…..I would tell them it was our extended family! LOL Finally though, we have a good friend who is a photographer and did a family photo shoot for us, and once she got the pics to me, she came over, took the frame down and put our pics in it! She then proceeded to help me build a whole wall of real family photos! Sometimes it just takes a friend to motivate us!

    May 20, 2017 at 11:00 am
    • Karen

      What a gift your friend gave you, Cathy! And your story about “extended family” is great! LOL! Thanks for sharing.

      May 20, 2017 at 11:16 am
  7. Linda

    Ok, now I can’t share this fault with you! Of course I’ll admit it took me two years after I found the door to get the photos in it!
    Well, heck! It won’t let me paste a picture!

    May 20, 2017 at 6:47 pm
    • Karen

      Oh, I’ve seen photo doors, and they are beautiful! So glad you got yours all filled up… even if it did take 2 years! LOL!

      May 21, 2017 at 6:07 am
  8. Debbie

    I used to be very quick to find a photo, size it, print it & place it in the frame. I find I like the older photos of younger children/grandchildren & miss them as I would an old friend when I change them out. As we have added to our family, I find I have more time between picture changes all the time -0r- I find a photo & think it’s too old to put in, I’ll take another one soon! Which happens all the time, but the sizing & printing….not so much!!! Thanks for making me feel “normal”!!!

    May 21, 2017 at 8:59 am
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