A Picture Perfect People

Brady and I made a list the other day, while on a road trip, of all the places we have visited together. I figured if we didn't start keeping some sort of record it would all just blend together after a while. Line by line we filled a page with all of our excursions, including our more recent trip to the Dominican Republic for our 1st year anniversary. Brady served his mission there and we agreed that it was time to go retrace the old stomping grounds of Elder Martinez. We stayed at the MTC in the capital for $6/night. In exchange, we were asked to visit the temple and clean our room before departure... Of course that was no problemo! During our 8 days there, we drove all over the island, hunting down families that Brady had baptized, exploring the many natural wonders, and observing the life of "another world". It is amazing how different life is just a plane ride away. All of the sudden we had stepped into a place where the roads look like Mario Kart, physical disabilities storm the population, and coconut shells scatter the streets. It was surprising how foreign I felt. Both Brady and I are part Mexican, so I figured I would sort of just blend in, but everywhere we went people starred, pointed, and whistled at us. I felt like some sort of gringa celebrity! I snapped pictures all along the way, and quickly learned that the Dominican people love having their picture taken. I am not sure if they dream of having their picture posted in the states, or just have a longing to be remembered, but if people noticed I had a camera they would pose, smile, and even request I take their picture. At first I would ask people if it was okay to take their picture, in fear that it might offend them, but I soon realized that getting pictures of the people was not going to be a problem. I even had to start pretending to take pictures of some people at their request, as to not run out of camera storage. There was one old man in particular that we came across at a corner Mercado. He and some friends were playing a game of Dominoes out front and I couldn't help but to snap a photo of him. To no surprise, he happily complied and then told me he would be sitting right outside if I needed anymore pictures of him. I couldn't help but giggle at how seemingly carefree these people were. They never said "oh hang on let me fix my hair", or "why do you want a picture of me", they were just happy to be remembered I suppose. Wouldn't it be nice if we all felt like that at a photo opportunity. No fancy clothes, flattering stances, or last minute touch ups, just a huge genuine smile. I hope that when people see pictures of me, they see not a cute outfit or interesting backdrop, but a very happy person.