Karen Hart: Nothing But Great Memories

Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment
 until it becomes a memory.
Dr. Seuss

by Skip Cohen

​Sunday Morning Reflections are never directly about business. It's my time to head off in whatever direction my heart's pointing. Right now, it's pointing north as I head to the airport in a few hours to spend time with good friends as we remember a member of our imaging family, Karen Hart. After a battle with various cancers that lasted at least five years, the industry lost one of its most enthusiastic supporters.

I first met Karen in the early '90s when she joined the Hasselblad sales force. She was a phenomenal hard-working businesswoman who knew how to close a sale. She was also a photographer, diver, golfer, and good friend to so many people in the industry.

But my purpose in writing about Karen this morning isn't to write a eulogy but to celebrate my pride in having her as a buddy! It's also a testimonial to the memories I have of hanging out with her over the years. 

I've written a lot about the value of photographs and their ability to take intangible memories and turn them into tangible moments we can hold forever. All those photographs and videos in our cameras, on our phones and computer, in files, or even in shoeboxes help keep us focused on how we love the people who influence us most in life. And when we lose them, it's the photographs that create a very special kind of mortality...we can look at a photo and hear the laughter that took place as the shutter was clicked.

As you get older, time speeds up. You start to recognize how small the world is getting, especially because of the loss of great friends. I'm at that point where I've learned that time really does fly when you're having a good time. I savor each day, each memory, and the people who have come into my life and touched my heart.

I wish everybody a day filled with more memorable moments. Capture as many memories as you can with a camera because years from now, you'll be able to touch them, close your eyes, and hear them, too.

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

As long as there's grief, I will endure it because it means that you were here and it mattered.
Unknown Author