I’m going through hundreds of scanned pictures from my dad’s side of the family. Pictures hide as much as they reveal, of course, but if I borrow university-style objectivity, here are three things I’ve noticed so far.

First, Grandma almost always smiled for the camera. She doesn’t display melancholy or brooding seriousness. Instead she’s smiling as if she’s ever ready to be in on the joke. Her smile makes her recognizable.

Second, Grandma always looked hot, the kind of hot that favoured sleeveless summer shirts, and single layers and short hair. She is rarely pictured with sweaters and I bet she never tried on a turtleneck in her life.

Third, her favourite accessory, the one she wore the most, was a watch. Other jewelry seemed to mark special occasions: visitors, First Communions, graduations. She was a nurse and the watch seems to accentuate the practicality of the profession; heartbeats in a minute, etc. See the time? It’s time to go!