Dear Camera

I picked this little Kodak Brownie at an antiques faire a few weeks ago… it's currently sitting in my kitchen, loaded with a roll of film that expired in 1978. (Thanks, eBay!) I'm just waiting for a beautiful day to go outside and shoot with it, and see what comes of it.

Dear Camera,
I just got you last month; I paid $15, which is significantly more than your original $6 price tag from 1952, but I totally think you're worth it.
Were you given as a gift, or did someone save their change to buy you at the corner drugstore?
Did an excited child receive you for her birthday, to take photos of her friends? Or newlyweds, on their honeymoon to a romantic destination? Have you been the first to see a baby through a lens?
Sixty years, you've been taking pictures, little camera, tell me what have you seen?
I like to pretend that you've taken photos I know; that someone has shared your exposures on Dear Photograph, or even Awkward Family Photos.
You're like the first part of Pleasantville, when life was all black and white and “perfect,” but now your imperfections are your charm. You're a little gritty and rusty, but your beauty shines through.
You've seen a lot in  your years, Camera, and I hope to show you more.