William Swanson, matroos, Newport, R.I., 1944 1944

This is a sweet little photograph of William Swanson, a sailor, taken in Newport, Rhode Island in 1944, and we don’t even know who took it! Think about that moment, though. A young man, a sailor on leave perhaps, sitting for a portrait. The photographer, someone unknown, seeing him. He is smiling. He probably has a sweetheart. Maybe this is for her. Maybe for his mother. You can see he’s handsome. There’s realness in his eyes. And who framed it? It’s a lovely object, humble, and the surface has been weathered and worn. It seems so small, so precious. Like, what will survive of us? Love.