There is a great article in this week’s Newsweek magazine. The article showcases the work of photographers who take pictures of families who experience the loss of a baby at birth or as a stillborn child. The group of photographers across the nation is called ‘Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep‘ .
We have our own experience through them when we lost our boy Nicholas. On that tragic day, one of the on duty nurses knew about the organisation and called Idlewild Photography in Winston-Salem who are one of the local participating photography studios for the group. After the photographer and his assistant arrived, we went into a separate room where they set up. We dressed Nicholas in the sleeping gown that we brought for him in expectation in taking him home. It was a trying moment for all of us given the tragedy of it all but the photographer’s sensitivity to this moment was extraordinary as they took photos of the last time we held Nicholas in our arms. He took different shots of us with him as well as closeups of his hands and feet.
When it was all done, the nurse came into the room and took Nicholas away.
We never saw him again.
A few weeks later we received the photos on a CD along with a slideshow. It did not cost us anything for the service and the photos were all ours to do as we please.
The photos were extraordinary in capturing our grief as well as preserving our memories of Nicholas for these photos are all we have of him now.
This group has done so much for families in their time of grief. They do this out of their generosity of their heart but what they give families like ourselves treasured memories beyond compare.
The photos can be seen on Flickr as well as on this photoset.
my heart goes out to the family and praise the photographers for doing this, never heard of this organization but am impressed with it.