For most people, losing a parent is one of the most heartbreaking events in a person’s life. Whether you have a complicated relationship or a super solid one, saying goodbye to those who gave you life and molded you into who you are is a big deal.

After a parent’s passing, it’s common to look for photos of them, to remember them in various stages of their life, but photographer Deanna Dikeman, who goes by @deannadikeman on Instagram, took that idea several steps further than most. Over 27 years, she documented her parents in a series of photographs of them waving goodbye to her in their driveway every time she left after a visit.

View this post on Instagram

How a simple goodbye became a 27-year project

The photographer’s project started in 1991 and continued until October 2017. Dikeman shared a post on her Instagram account featuring the series of photographs, which went on display at Réseau LUX (@reseau_lux) on 7 November 2024 in Paris under the title “Leaving and........

© Upworthy