Interview:

Dear Diary: 

Today for my BLS Class I had the opportunity to choose someone to conduct an oral history interview. “Native of your state or city or country of Origin ” I read out-loud which were the requirements to pick someone for the interview. Who should I choose? I kept telling myself. I went that day thinking about it on my way home. My father! I had never thought about asking him what was something special to him which made him the perfect person to interview so he could share his story. 

For the next few days I went gathering my questions to prepare for the interview. “Apa vamos a firmar en el parque.” I had planned to film it in a setting that would resemble something similar to “home.” My father grew up in Mexico and was always surrounded by trees. I felt like the park would bring him a sense of comfort and allow him to freely open up.  On October 7th me and my father headed to a nearby park to start filming.

 In the interview he shared his two significant artifacts which were a plane ticket and a childhood photo. The childhood photo was able to shape his education and he expressed the gratitude he held towards his teacher for teaching him how to read and write. This allowed him to obtain the knowledge he has now despite the little years he went to school for.  The picture also marked a difference in his development as a child to an adult. He was very timid and shy but his actions reflected the discipline he had learned from his parents.  This transcended into his role as a parent teaching me and my siblings to be educated and respectful.  The plane ticket was a ticket for opportunity.  Being in Mexico he didn’t have a lot of resources available to him but coming to New York opened him to the possibility of working and financially helping out his parents who were still in mexico. I found it interesting that if it weren’t for that ticket he wouldn’t be here and neither would I. It’s crazy to see that all those events will one day lead to me interviewing him. 

 Doing this interview made me feel privileged of the life I am living. My father, like any other child, had dreams but because of his economic situation he had to give it up and find a way to make a better living. This made me realize to not take my education for granted and to value the food, shelter, and money I am provided with. This project serves to preserve his legacy of the decision, struggle, and opportunities that were brought within those artifacts. 

This interview had a spiritual effect on me because it made me realize that everyone holds a unique story within them that goes untold or gets forgotten in their memories. In a way it saddened me that their stories will never be heard by the public and we will never know what truly shaped them.  Doing this interview wasn’t easy for me because conducting a more intimate conversation with my father wasn’t our typical conversations at home. But in the end I was able to feel more interconnected and felt closer to him.  I decided to conduct it in Spanish because this would allow my father to easily express himself without having any restrictions on certain words. Doing it in English wouldn’t give the same tone or meaning to the conversation. Overall I wanted the viewers to have an insight on how the artifact my father chose shaped the person he became and how it influenced me as well.  I hope you guys were able to learn about the decisions and actions people have to take and how those little moments truly shape your future self.

Cajita: