2
ON THE DAY when I left the third grade, my classmates threw a party for me. Everyone had brought cupcakes or cookies, and they had collaborated on a card that said GOOD LUCK, PETER. I was pleased, embarrassed, and moved. When it was time to go, I stood at the door with my hand on the knob. I swallowed hard. I thought that I ought to say something.
At this point I had one of those flashes of inspiration that go off in one’s brain now and then like a flashbulb or a bolt of lightning. I said, “I’d like to take a picture of all of you so I can be sure that I’ll never forget you.”
I had all my classmates gather at one end of the room for a group portrait. I spent some time moving them around to get a good composition, and then I said, “Okay, everybody, that looks just perfect. Now everybody smile.” Everybody smiled, and I held the camera to my eye. The familiar uncertainty gripped me, and my finger trembled over the button. I clamped my teeth together, closed my eyes, and pushed.
“Okay, everybody, you can relax now,” I called out. I wound the knob on the bottom of the camera. “You know,” I said, “snapshots capture your memories forever.”
I wasn’t using film in the camera, of course, so my memories began to fade as soon as I walked out the door.
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You’ll find an overview of the entire work in An Introduction to The Personal History, Adventures, Experiences & Observations of Peter Leroy. It’s a pdf document.
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