... Family Pictures

For this prompt, I was asked to find an old family photo and write two narratives for it; one fiction and one non-fiction. I find family photographs (or in this case selfie, because that's how my family rolls) to be inherently narrative since you have this picture of everyone smiling and being happy and you have no idea what caused it unless you were there at that time. You can come up with hundreds of different stories for the people in the frame and never know the real story unless one of the subjects chooses to tell you. Following the photo are the two narratives I have written, but you have to decide which one to believe.

Taken in July, 2018; From left to right: Me, Zoe, John, Brad, Amy, and Amy.

Narrative One:

It was a humid, rainy day in late July and my cousin Zoe and I had been waiting for this week all summer; senior year band camp. Every summer our band takes a one week trip to a university in northern Michigan where we spend all of our time and effort on our marching show for the season. This years theme was "Starry Night," centered all around Van Gogh's painting. Zoe and I had known each other since birth, and have been playing alto saxophone together since the sixth grade; and we were delighted to be named section leaders for our senior year, but we knew that this year would be the hardest yet. Thankfully we had our lovely family to support us. My Dad (John) and Mom (Amy) are the best parents ever ― I mean, I'm obviously biased― but my Aunt Amy and Uncle Brad (my mom's brother) are close seconds. Growing up with a cousin who became not only your best friend, but practically your sister, was the best thing that could've happened to us ― and I knew that with her by my side, our senior year was going to be amazing.

Narrative Two:

Band camp was the worst part of the summer. Non-stop activity, extreme heat, and no electronics made it the most dreadful aspect of marching band. It was our senior year and I was trying something new; color guard. I had been an alto saxophone (which I still played during concert season), a member of the front ensemble, and had finally landed in color guard after 3 abysmal seasons. The only reason Zoe and I did marching band at this point was for the friendships and so that we could play in the jazz band in the winter and spring. However, with Zoe (and our other best friend Tommie) as section leaders in the alto section, and me being in a section I actually enjoyed for once, maybe this band camp wouldn't be as horrible as all the rests. Before departing for Andrew's University our parents insisted on a selfie, all while cracking jokes about how horrible band camp and the band director was. Our separate families had gone through hell together a couple years ago which resulted in bond between the six of us we never saw coming. Although we are technically not related, Zoe is like my sister and her parents are honestly my 2nd parents (if such a thing existed) and visa versa. Knowing that you have a support system as you and your best friend reluctantly walk into a week of hell is the reason why the smiles are so big in this family selfie.