I just discovered the wonder of time-lapse videos. I recently saw my first one on YouTube. It’s a popular video by Dutch filmmaker Frans Hofmeester called “Portrait of Lotte.” Hofmeester filmed his daughter Lotte every week from birth to 14 years old. The video shows Lotte going from a smiling toothless baby to a young girl with braces. You can see Lotte talking in the video, but the only sound you hear is sweet background music. Since its release, the video has over 4 million views on YouTube.
TIME Magazine reported that Hofmeester makes time-lapse videos as a way to bond with his children. He has another video of his son Vince growing up from birth to age 11. Hofmeester used the time he shot the videos to talk to his kids about their lives and how their weeks were going.
I was mesmerized watching the video. As I watched Lotte transform before my eyes, a thought came to mind: “This father really loves his daughter.” That was the sense I got. He is enjoying every part of her life, and he sees the beauty in every stage of her development. Maybe that’s why the video is so popular. It’s a picture of a father’s love for his daughter.
After watching Lotte’s video, I decided to search for more. I thought it would be amazing to see a video that highlights a child’s life before he or she is even born. To my delight, I found an adorable pregnancy time-lapse video by “Mama Natural” on Youtube. The video shows Genevieve Damascus going from nine to 39 weeks pregnant. After the video we get to see the beautiful baby she was carrying for all those months.
I love these videos because they gently remind us that life is precious at every stage. From the 9-week-old baby in the womb to a 14-year-old girl and beyond, life is worth remembering and cherishing.
