It's That Time of Year...and Loaded with Traditions

by Skip Cohen

​It's Sunday, and as usual, I'm miles away from my typical marketing and business topics. This is my day to recharge and remember there's a whole world out having nothing to do with photography. Yet, it's ironic because I often need photographs to make my point. 

Halloween is tomorrow. It would be my Dad's 100th birthday, but that's not my point. For me, Halloween marks the kickoff of a long series of great traditions, some old and some new. On the more vintage side is dressing up for Halloween. The cowboy shot was when I was five. Today an outfit like that would get my parents arrested, and me sent to CPS! The spaceman suit was when I was nine - there was no Star Wars, just spacemen.

Last but not least, the Viking was just a few years ago. The costume is pretty amazing and thanks to the salesforce back in Hasselblad days. It brings back its own collection of memories. And Dad's costume as Michelangelo's "David" I just used for a neighborhood party last weekend.

​There's candy in the house in the traditional Halloween bowl with our favorites deep at the bottom in the hopes that we don't get enough kids, and Sheila and I are left with a few. Why does our thought process work this way? We could easily pick up candy at any time of the year, the week, or the day. But we don't - and it wouldn't taste as good. LOL

Then there are new traditions - for example, Sheila and I have a blast decorating through the holidays, and Halloween is no exception. Our front porch is set up with pumpkins, a ghost, a flying witch, bats, and spiders. Inside the house, there are elements that scream Halloween everywhere. As a kid, we never did anything but put Sheila and me together in a store like HomeGoods, and there's a whole collection of themed decorations headed home.

So, it starts with Halloween and rolls into Thanksgiving and right through the December holidays and New Years. All along the way, there are memories that flow as easily as turning on the kitchen faucet. And with each story, which we've shared with each other so many times in the past, it's as if we've never heard them before. From recipes to decorations to stories and laughs - it's simply a fantastic time of year.

And that hits my point - whatever traditions you have in your family, savor each memory. Share the stories, enjoy the flashbacks and recognize the business most of us are in. While we help people capture memories and turn the intangible tangible, we're self-serving, capturing our own memories and creating traditions that last a lifetime.

Wishing everybody a day ahead filled with those traditions that give you the biggest smile. This is a time of year when nothing beats a look in your rearview mirror. And always go for those eleven-second hugs with those you love who have become part of the traditions in your life.

Happy Sunday...or Monday on the other side of the world.