136 - Pictures

*That depends on what you want with pictures. I can take pictures and use the editing program. But if you want the color pops, or overlays or anything that requires recoding the picture, go talk to Camille. – Priscilla*

Mitch and Shonda came down the stairs as Camille was showing Peggy the front living room with the formal living room set. The young voice that was struggling to find its place as a man’s voice drew their attention as his voice broke.

“Are they ready?” Camille asked as she looked at her smart watch.

“They are so pretty, *moeder,” Mitch declared, having forgotten to be embarrassed over his voice cracking. “How do you say someone is pretty?”

”*Mijn zus is erg mooi*,” Camille said and then thought how to say it phonetically. “Mine, like that’s mine. Zoos like places you keep animals. Es, just like the letter S. Earch like the first part of error, er and then a soft C H sound. And then mooi… oh! Like moist without the S T at the end. *Mijn zus is erg mooi*.”

”*Mijn zus is erg mooi*,” Mitch said slowly and then repeated it a little faster and then at regular speed. “My sister is pretty.”

“My sister is very pretty,” Camille grinned.

“What about my sister’s friend?”

”*De vriendin van mijn zus is erg knap*.”

Mitch’s eyes went wide, and he shook his head.

Camille chuckled, “It’s not as bad as you think. “Day just like today. Vriendin, ummm, like free but with a V instead of an F and then -ndin like you’re in a bear’s den. Van like Van Trappe. And at the end is knap like a mop with an N instead of an M.”

Again, Mitch said it slowly a few times before saying it with more confidence. After thinking for a moment, he said, “*Mijn zus* and… I don’t remember and.”

“En, just like the first part of enter.”

He nodded at her and then started again. “*Mijn zus en haar vriendin is erg knap*.”

“Very close,” Camille praised. “It’s plural so it will no longer be is, it will be *zijn*. *Mijn zus en haar vrienden zijn erg mooi*.”

Taking a deep breath, he tried again. When he had it down without hesitation, Camille praised him again.

“Wonderful! *Prachtig*!” holding out her arms, she offered him a hug.

“I like learning a new language,” he admitted.

She squeezed him a little tighter and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. She found herself wondering when he suddenly got taller but realized it had actually been a slow process. That knowledge did not make it any easier.

“I will introduce you to a friend of mine,” Camille promised. “She was a linguist in the military and speaks about twenty different languages and dialects.”

“Really?”

“Really,” she pushed him back a little bit and turned him towards the back door. “Go get Darkness and I’ll go grab my camera.”

“Okay!” he took off running for the back door and the path to the woodshop.

“What language is that” Peggy asked as Camille as she moved to get her camera from the nearby entryway table.

“Dutch,” Camille said as she powered up the digital camera and adjusted her settings from the last time that she used it. “My mother’s grandmother immigrated from Holland after World War Two.”

“Mandy was reading a book the other day about the Netherlands during the war. *A Hiding Place, I think.”

“Corrie Ten Boom,” Camille nodded. “When we can travel again, I would love to take the kids to the Netherlands, and her house is so awesome to see. “

“She… she was real?” Peggy asked.

Camille nodded. “She was. Sweet woman, but no, I personally did not get to meet her.”

Darkness and Donovan came into the house with Mitch practicing his new phrases in Dutch. Camille smiled at her husband and ignored the sawdust on both men. She gave Tink the command to go lay on his bed and he moved towards the bed that was situated in the living room where the sun would warm him.

“Are you ready?” Nicki yelled from upstairs.

“Hang on,” Camille called as she messed with the light switch dimmers. Once she had the lights the way that she wanted, she ordered Peggy and Donovan off to the side where they could not see their daughter. “Mandy, I want you to come down and there’s a stair with a blue X on it, I want you to stop there.”

“Okay,” came from up stairs and then a shadowy figure moved through the darkened hallway upstairs.

Stopping on the X about halfway down the stairs, she smiled nervously at Camille.

“Perfect, move to your right, right hand on the railing, at the blue tape, turn slightly towards the railing, a little more, stop, left hand relaxed at your side, tip your head up slightly. Forget how awkward you feel and smile.”

The dark emerald strapless dress with a sweetheart cut and high slit on the long skirt had the infamous line of “I’m not bad, I’m just drawn that way,” running through her head. Raising her camera, she snapped several pictures.

“Hold that position,” Camille ordered as she adjusted the canned lights and then ran up the stairs to take pictures from above. Moving to the other side of the staircase, she had Mandy turn slightly away from the railing and look over her shoulder at Camille.

From this angle, she was able to get a picture of the corset detailing and rouching at the hips and waist allowing for easy movement in the skintight dress.

“Darkness! Turn on the lamps in the living room.”

Bright lights flooded from below and created a back lighting that was perfect for a silhouette of the redhead. Camille adjusted Mandy’s stance once again and then snapped more pictures.

“Alright, back upstairs and I’ll call you in just a second.”

Mandy went up and Camille went down, and she positioned Donovan at the foot of the stairs before turning off the lamps and adjusting the lights again. When she was in a crouching position, she called for Mandy to come on down.

Smiling, she snapped picture after picture of Donovan as his little girl came into view. Captured for all time was the face of adoration and realization that his little girl was all grown up. Camille had done enough weddings to know that this was a moment that would last in their memories forever more. The next time he looked at his daughter like that, she would be in a wedding dress.

Pictures were taken of Mandy with her parents and then with each one.

When that was done, she did the same with Nicki. Her positions on the staircase were slightly different to accentuate her dress and long braids.

Darkness and Mitch made to stand off to the side until Camille was ready for them. She caught the same expressions along with the sadness of what his brother would never see.

Camille already had the shadow pictures worked out in her head. The smiling faces of Jasper and Keisha had been taken from different pictures.