Betty Moody looks at her week old great grandchild, Luke Kyle, for the first time during a family get together at Ian and Jessica Kyle's home.

Jessica feeds Luke at around 10:30 p.m. in his nursery after only sleeping for an hour. While Jessica feeds Luke he continues to fall asleep. "I know if you don't eat now you’ll be awake in 30 minutes," she says.  Jessica finally puts him back into his crib and lays back down to sleep. Only 15 minutes later Luke begins to cry again.

Since Prehistoric times, humans have pierced their bodies for reasons ranging from fashion to religion to social status. Today, ear piercing is a rite of passage for countless girls. It marks a small step toward adulthood, a "tween-age" milestone for girls moving from childhood to adolescence. Stacey Scott looks at the newly pierced ears of her daughter Kaunyia Harvey, in Claire's Accessories. "She just wanted to be a little lady, so I figured this was the next step for her to become a little lady," says Scott.

Steven watches for deer with his father Anthony Browning shortly after sunrise. There were no signs of deer that morning. "We already have a really good strong bond between the two of us. We do a lot together and this is just an enhancement of that," says Anthony of his relationship with Steven.

Steven Browning smiles at his father after taking his first shot at a deer. "This to me is a success. We saw a deer. We saw two deer. We saw two bucks. And he got a shot on his first hunting trip," says Anthony.

For a year, Allen Addair III counted down the days to his 21st birthday. On May 7, the moment arrived-legal at last. Widely considered a gateway to adulthood, the 21st birthday is as much about newfound independence as it is about the right to buy beer. For Addair, it's a moment to celebrate with friends and family. Allen Addair shows his ID to Ed Marsh, the bouncer at Mudpuppy's in Lynchburg, Va. Addair came to the bar with his best friend, Kyle Schaffner, at 11:45 pm the day before his 21st birthday and waited outside for thirty minutes before he was allowed in at 12:15 am.

Allen Addair celebrates his 21st birthday at O'Charley's during a friends and family dinner. He is wearing a hat that says,"Buy me a drink." The hat was given to him by his friends.

(From left) Tiffany Oaks, mother in-law Ruth Davis, and Victoria Davis help Christin Smith get ready for her wedding in the basement of the Snidow Chapel at Lynchburg College. Smith is moments away from getting married to Elijah Davis, her high school sweetheart.

Christin Smith (left) and Elijah Davis kiss during their wedding ceremony at Snidow Chapel at Lynchburg College. "King Elijah, you may now kiss your queen," says Garry Davis, Elijah's father, who married the couple.

Lisa is forced to confront her parents’ decline and mortality. For the first time in her life, the parent/child roles are reversed; now Lisa is responsible for her parents’ welfare.

Lisa Dibble shows her father pants that she bought for him to wear around the house during his first day home from the Medical Care Center. "This will be the first time they've really been apart ever....This is going to be a big change," says Dibble.

Becky Shorter and her "retirement dog" Dusty wave to bus 16 as it passes her home in Appomattox on the first day of school. That was the same route that Shorter drove for the past 36 years.

For the older generation, learning how to use a computer can serve as a stark reminder of how technology - like time - passes us by. It can confuse or intimidate, excite or reward. However we react, there comes a moment when we all must decide, how, and if, we let new technology into our lives. Leo Klein, 71, listens to instructions on Microsoft Excel during a Thomas Road Baptist Church Community Group class called "Basic Computing"

Life takes shape like the beads in a kaleidoscope - no two patterns are the same. It is finite for all, with a clear beginning and end. For those close to death, life is pulled into sharper focus. For some, every breath, every moment is one to cherish. Jennis Johnson gets carts for people while working as a greeter at the Walmart Supercenter in Bedford, Va. Even though Johnson is terminally ill he still likes to go to work. "I never sit in the bed all day," says Johnson of his active life.

John F. DiStefano, the Chief of Hematology/Oncology, goes over the CT scans of Jennis "Little Man" Johnson's lungs with his wife, Francis and him at the VA Medical Center in Salem, Va. Johnson has battled prostate and lung cancer for the last ten years and suffers from a terminal lung disease.

Jennis "Little Man" Johnson rests while on oxygen at home almost seven months after being given the prognosis of three to six months to live. "Someday, I know I got to go, and I prepare for it,” Johnson says.