I laugh when I look up at my family tree. I see all my Italian relatives from my mom’s side—Uncle Angel and Aunt Teresa or Dominic and Louise; and then that whole eclectic cluster of branches from my dad’s hometown of Froglevel, North Carolina. It’s no wonder I have such a hard time figuring myself out!
I have my house up for sale, and as I began to pack for my upcoming move, I spent hours sidetracked, thumbing through old family photos with my magnifying glass in hand. I carefully examined faces with no names and whispered aloud. “She has my eyes. He has my nose.” And all the while I was imagining what unseen internal characteristics each one might have passed on to me. Where did I get my passion for adventure? Which one instilled my love for nature?
Isn’t it remarkable the journey we travel just spending a few precious moments with a single old ancestral photo? Years ago at an antique farm auction, I watched as a box of faded old black and whites were placed on the block. I assumed they were precious to the last owner of the farm, an old woman who had recently died. The auctioneer tried hard to get a bid—any kind of bid. Call me a sucker, but I finally offered a dollar and hauled them home, simply because I felt those memories—even though they were not mine—needed to be honored. (Which of my ancestors can I blame for that part of my heart?)
Sometimes I enjoy clicking endlessly though our Customer Showcase of vintage photos (http://www.canvasondemand.com/testimonials/Vintage/5/1.html).
I don’t know anything about that man doing the handstand on the beach, but I imagine he meant the world to Nancy from Wadsworth, Ohio. She tells us it is of her 84-year-old father when he was in his 20s.
And how I wish I could have been in the audience to hear the mariachi band that
Dyan’s father-in-law played in decades ago (love the added red accents).
Charles from Odessa, Texas had us create a canvas of his father, William, who was a driller on oil rigs in west Texas in the 40s. What character and strength this photo portrays!
So here’s to our family tree! Hundreds of our customers are keeping their histories alive by having Canvas on Demand create heirlooms from their favorite vintage photos. We can do that for your family too. Mom
Tags: adventure, Art Canvas, Canvas Art, Canvas On Demand, Canvas Photos, canvas print, canvas prints, family tree, heirloom photo, vintage photo
Ever look at someone,whether they’re your own child or not,and feel a sense of Parental Pride? Well, I feel that way about Joe and Tom, the co-owners of Canvas on Demand. Joe is actually my son; Tom is actually 
