My mom’s beautiful smile is the only thing that could distract from the aching nostalgia of seeing the World Trade Center in this 1972ish photo of the two of us from New York’s Liberty Island.

I was born in New Jersey and after a few years was raised in my mom Kathy’s hometown of Rochester, NY. I’m now thousands of miles away in Seattle, but through the joy of countless Kodak moments in my possession, family is always close at hand.

Tragic events on Sept. 11 have made me revisit this image more than any other in the years since 2001. I’m glad to have a more innocent and cherished reminder of the beauty of a blue-sky day over lower Manhattan.

shared by ~@kurt_schlosser