I would love to see video of myself as a toddler. Maybe it would explain my adult personality. “Oh, look, I’m brooding in the corner while the other kids are playing duck duck goose. I guess it’s just in my DNA to be antisocial.” It would free me from hoping antidepressants can cure my allergy to small talk. Instead, I have to ask my mom what I was like as a 2 year old, to which she responds, “Oh geez, I don’t even remember. Crazy?”
As a parent in the era when nearly everyone has an HD video camera in their pocket, few things are more egregious than failing to document every adorable, goofy moment of your kid’s life. I’m experiencing chunks of their childhood like a Japanese tourist soaks in The Vatican.
As much as I love watching and sharing the videos with family, it’s Arlo who’s most devoted; watching the same clips of himself over and over again. His is the first generation to experience such unfettered access to their own moving image. To be so aware of what he looks like eating, dancing, singing, running, and crying at such a young age must do something, right? Or am I old and therefore automatically suspicious of technology’s increasing role in our lives? At some point, reality and recordings of reality merge, and we’re stuck in a terrible scifi movie where only one person knows what’s real vs. recorded, and he’s being hunted by an alien police force led by his birth father whom he’s never met.
Arlo points to the screen and says “Awo, Awo.” If we laugh at the video, he laughs too, and continues to laugh at those same videos even after we’ve stopped. Later, he’ll call those same clips up again, and bring them to us while laughing. He’s two, and we’re teaching him what makes him funny, and he’s able to watch that behavior repeatedly like a gymnast trying to perfect a dismount. This must play some role in his development that we likely won’t understand for years. But I’m sure my grandparents said something similar about television, and look where that got us! (I have no idea where it got us.)
OK, gotta run. I just realized we don’t have any footage of Arlo napping and I don’t want to miss my window.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
I have wondered about this as well. How old was I when I actually ‘saw’ myself??? Now, my kids (three and 20 mo) do the same as yours- they watch themselfs constantly. Will they be more self aware then I was? I’m glad I am not alone wiht my wonders, Jason Good
My cousin’s kid (20 months) believes that any small lcd screen is a touch screen, and got very upset when my camera’s screen wouldn’t move
My three year old hasn’t experienced something until he has seen the video of himself doing it. Will he have an amazing, detailed memory of early childhood? Will he be an insufferable narcissist? Will he be however all the other kids his age will be? Can’t control it, and the phone videos keep things under control on long public transit rides, so we’re rolling with it.
I’ve thought about this a lot lately too. I feel like I remember my childhood through photos and because of photos. It would change everything to have such instant playback at that age.
I’ve thought about this too. One of my nephew’s first spoken phrases was “on demand” (as in, “but it’s on demand dada” when my brother told him Dora wasn’t on at that exact minute) and now he is obsessed with videos of himself on our iphones. He even knows when to cut them off so they stay under the time limit for emailing because once, just once, they tried to email me a video and it didn’t go through and he suspected it was video length. I’m hoping it just means that he’ll grow up super smart and not scary like the sci fi movie you mention.
Side note, I can’t believe tomorrow is 365. Sort of in denial. And I hope it’s not creepy for an internet stranger to say I’m proud of you, but I just said it so there. 365 days of this feels kind of huge. But I’ll save my congratulations for tomorrow.
Anticipating tomorrows blog!!!!!
This is the answer;
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/05/deb-roy-the-birth-of-a-wo_n_1120762.html?ref=technology&icid=maing-grid7|main5|dl14|sec1_lnk2|117873
I think it’s funny when babies see themselves in the mirror and know it’s a baby, but don’t know it’s them!
I honestly hadn’t considered the impact of watching himself on video on my son– interesting! I’m not even sure he grasps that he’s watching himself at this point. He’s 21 months old, and he just thinks that “baby” in the videos is hilarious. Cracks himself up.
Growing up, my daughter preferred to get immediate feedback for herself. She spent at least 75% of her time awake in front of reflective surfaces dancing, singing, doing funny poses or just looking at herself while answering my oft queried, “how long are you going to stand there in front of the TV?”
It does not seem to have done any permanent damage…
I often wish my folks had taken Super 8 of me when I was little too. I’m told I never crawled, but instead scooted around on my butt pulling myself along with my legs. I went straight from that to walking, and apparently I was lightning fast. Now that would’ve been fun to see. It also explains why I have never been one to do stuff like everyone else.
Also, I’m sure I’m not the only one hoping that tomorrow your blog name changes to Jason Good 730.