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Kathleen describes her path to becoming a speech pathologist. She describes her experience growing up with her younger sister Margaret Mary who was born with cerebral palsy. As a child she tried to find ways to help her sister learn to speak. Later, she took her first speech pathology course in college, and went on to work in a private practice and at an elementary school. Kathleen Becker's Story Kathleen describes her path to becoming a speech pathologist. She describes her experience growing up with her younger sister Margaret Mary who was born with cerebral palsy. As a child she tried to find ways to help her sister learn to speak. Later, she took her first speech pathology course in college, and went on to work in a private practice and at an elementary school. Kathleen Becker's Story 00:00 / 04:49 I feel lucky in the way I found speech and language pathology, because I certainly didn't know anything about it when I was growing up. But how I got into it started with my sister. And when she was born, she sort of changed our family because she was born very, very disabled. She had very severe Cerebral Palsy. And there were no services available for people with disabilities then unless you were paying for it privately. And our family was working class and they had seven kids and they really didn't have any money. And it really changed my family. I mean, my mother became very depressed and my father started drinking more than he had even been drinking before. And it was devastating to the family. And so first being raised Catholic and being very fervent, I would sprinkle holy water on her. I would pray to God all the time. I would make deals with God. That if like, he would get one of her legs working, it would be okay if one of my legs didn't work. She was very, very disabled. She never learned how to walk or talk or could feed herself. She was basically like an infant. So I set about trying to teach my sister how to talk. And one day I had gotten her propped up in such a way and I had practiced enough with her that I told her that I was gonna call my mother in. And that when Mom came in, that then I wanted her to say ‘hi’, which is what I had taught her to say. And my mom walked in the room and now you're thinking like my mom's kind of depressed already to begin with. And she walks in the room and I say to her, I say to Margaret, say ‘hi’ to mom. And Margaret does. She says, ‘ah-hi’, which is how you say hi when you inhale. And I thought it was really cool that I had taught her how to say hi, but my mother just turned around and walked out of the room and never said anything about it. And that was pretty devastating to me because I just really didn't understand why my mom didn't think that this was really great, like, look, she can do this. My first job that I went to was in a very impoverished area called the Northeast Kingdom. And I worked there with preschoolers. And I met my first child who didn’t speak at all. And I was really confronted with the fears that I had from when I tried to teach my sister who couldn't talk at all. It's called the Northeast Kingdom. And I worked there with this boy. And he just understood everything I said to him. He should have been able to talk, but he just, anything I tried, he just looked at me and shook his head, no. He wasn't gonna do it. So one day I was like in such a panic, he came to the clinic and I just forgot everything that I learned in graduate school about how you're supposed to be a professional. And I just remembered my sister and that when I would play with her, I would just do things that she really liked the best. And so I just, I picked him up, I took him, I put him in my car and I drove to a horse stable where there was a baby horse there. And his mother had told me he liked baby animals. And when we got ready to leave the stable, he ran up to the horses and I heard him speak. I heard him say, ‘bye bye, horsey.’ And so when the next day he came into the clinic, I had gotten some new books, some Sesame Street books that I knew he liked Sesame Street. And he climbed in my lap and I, you know, I was basically, you know, he's pointing to the books and I'm like, yeah, David, I know, I know, I know you like Sesame Street, but it was so much fun with you at the stable yesterday. And I heard you talk to the horses. I heard you say bye-bye to the horses. So now that I know that you really can talk, I want you to tell me who this is. And he just looked at me and he said, oh, that's Ernie. And after that, he opened page after page of the book and he did have problems speaking. He sounded funny when he spoke. And it's because he had what's called the repaired cleft palate, which is a hole in the roof of your mouth, but it had been repaired when he was a baby. And so he knew that he sounded different and we would spend, you know, many months working on making his speech better. But that initial when I got to be the person who got to hear him speak first, just like I got to hear my sister speak first, that one word. Previous Next

Barbara shares her story of becoming the owner of a bookstore, specializing in antique books. She shares memories from these years including her knowledge of books. Barbara S's Story Barbara shares her story of becoming the owner of a bookstore, specializing in antique books. She shares memories from these years including her knowledge of books. Scroll to listen Barbara S's Story 00:00 / 04:14

< Back Owen's Story, 2024 00:00 / 04:48 How has life been different than what you'd imagine? Well, I guess starting back from when I graduated college, I thought when I was in college, I said, you know, I get married, have a job, have a bunch of kids, live in a house, you know, all that kind of stuff. And, you know, that eventually happened. But one thing that didn't happen that I really wanted to have happen was that I have three brothers, and I was hoping that, you know, we all live in the same area that, you know, maybe once a month, we get together for lunch, discuss how our parents are doing, you know, talk about the future, how you know, just sort of like a, you know, bunch of guys getting together and, you know, having a good time. And that never happened, for various reasons. And it was it was a big disappointment because, you know, these are, you know, three guys that I grew up with and spent a lot of time with and, you know, was looking forward to the future, them being part of the future. And, you know, as it turned out, they were not, a significant part of the future. I've had various relationships with different brothers at different times. But, short of going to funerals together, you know, there is very little of, spending time together on a regular basis. And, you know, there are lots of reasons for it. You know? Other brothers had children. You know, one moved away. You know, there are just all sorts of things that happened, but it just didn't work out. So, it was a it was a great disappointment for me. As for, you know, the other things, you know, I thought I'd get married and stay married forever because that's, you know, how I experienced life when I was growing up. You know, my parents got married and they stayed married until they died. And, you know, so I expected that. And it turned out I ended up getting divorced. And, you know, that was sort of a surprise for me, but there was really no choice. I've made something for me to continue having a decent life. That had to happen. What else? You know, I wanted to have a bunch of kids, but I ended up only having one. And, you know, that was a disappointment for me. And, basically, my relationship with my wife did not permit us to have more than one child. So, you know, that didn't work out. So, there's a bunch of things that that I had imagined would be a certain way in my life and then and weren't that way. You know, I would spend my life in one place and, you know, retire and, you know, do whatever old people do when they retire, which I haven't figured out yet, but I'm still trying to work that one out. So, you know, that was not, as I had expected my life to be. You know, that that that's part of it. It doesn't mean that that since that didn't work out as I expected, it doesn't mean that what I ended up with was bad. It's just not what I had expected to be. I guess looking back at it now, now that you're older, now that these things has happened in your life, I guess, like, do you accept it now? Like, are you more okay with it now than before? Well, there there's some things I am and some things I'm not. You know, I got married a second time. I got another kid. So, I have two kids now. So, you know, that's helped. With my brothers, you know, I have one brother I talk to. I have one brother we have I have no communication with, and I have another brother who we have a very tentative email relationship with. So, you know, I'm not happy about that, but it's it is what it is. And, you know, one of the things I didn't mention was I always wanted to have grandchildren. Right? I now have three grandchildren. It's great. I love it. I spend as much time as I can with them, and it's as much fun or more fun than I thought it was gonna be. And I really, really enjoy, even more than I thought I would. And I think in part two I always enjoyed being with my grandparents, and it was just it was a a special thing. And, I'm hoping that my grandkids have that same experience and take it with them through. Previous Next

< Back Pam's Story 00:00 / 03:48 My story is about resilience. I have learned at 65 years old that resilience is a process and not a personality trait. I really wish I had learned this when I was younger because I probably wouldn't have spent so much time being so judgmental and critical of myself. Resilience isn't about when something difficult happens in your life and you forget about it and move on. I was ignoring my feelings and stuffing all my emotions into a very dark place. Throughout my life, I've had some bad experiences, more than some people and less than others. I grew up in an abusive household, and it continued until my thirties. The parents were physically, sexually, and emotionally abusive. And because it was so bad, I blocked my knowledge of this even happening. Nightmares and flashbacks were my first clue that something was wrong. Your brain's ability to block memories works by protecting the psyche to help you survive. If I had actually known what was going on, I might have died. Something else that was very difficult in a different way was moving so many times. When I entered ninth grade, it was my seventh move. We moved every two to two and a half years. The dad was in office furniture sales, and we went where he went. This was really hard on me because I would move, meet new friends, then move again, lose those friends, and meet new ones. It was a constant cycle of change. I couldn't depend on anything, so I have very few memories of that time as well. Again, my my brain blocked what was going on. Another way I dealt with the dark inside me was by being a serious athlete in high school, college, and adult athletic programs. I swam, ran, and participated in triathlons. I would recommend to anyone that being an athlete is a good way to spend time, so it's not bad by itself. But hindsight, I was totally running away from my feelings. Again, it was a way for my brain to block terrible memories. And then as an adult, I've experienced many physical issues, including an eating disorder, migraines, TBIs, Parkinson's disease, and a back injury. Only in the last six months have I understood how resilient I am. But the good news is that through this back injury, I've been able to feel both the physical and emotional pain. I started working with a pain management expert out of the Boston, Massachusetts area. People in severe pain tend to make their lives very small by staying at home, not seeing people, not learning new things, or not moving the body. If I shut down my pain and live a small life, it makes my pain worse. I'm not telling you this story to complain. This is a story about how I've been able to look back on my history and learn what it takes to be resilient. I am now making my life bigger by doing small things like playing the guitar, taking singing lessons, and working a part time job as a dragon boat team coach manager. I try to shine a light on my pain to help open it up and heal. I use music, meditation, breathing techniques, and body scans to calm myself down and to be in the present moment. But most importantly, the only way you can heal physically and emotionally is to make the choice that the pain is real. Previous Next

< Back David's Story, 2024 David shares stories of his experience with the start of the pride parade in Northampton, MA. 00:00 / 03:51 David: Yeah. I was around nineteen eighty or 81, I think, and I was only preferably involved with the the planning of the march. But I was involved with a a group of of gay men that, we formed it because at that time, the only local groups were either lesbian groups or UMass. Taylor: Mhmm. David: And it was college age. And this is an era of especially in Northampton, there was, like, sort of a separatist thing. A lot of lesbians, you know, did not wanna have anything to do with gay men. So, in our organization, we had people that wanted to be in this first March, but, a lot of them were social workers or teachers or you know, they even worked in local businesses. And at that time, they would lose their jobs if it was done. So, what they did, and we didn't think about what it would mean at the time, but these, people wore bags over their heads, you know, with the eyes cut out so they see where they're going. But that became like something that a lot of people remembered about that first March. And so, I haven't forgotten that. Then I remember the second year that we had it, there had been a number of death threats. And at that time, there was a feminist bookstore on one of the side streets downtown in North Hampton, and, they'd received, arson threats. And, so when we were, in our parade, at that time, we had to go, like, a certain route. We the jail the county jail still used to be in Northampton sort of downtown area. And so, we had to go by that, and we had to go by the police station. So, but I remember looking up and seeing police sharpshooters up on the buildings as we went by. That was pretty scary. Yeah. Taylor: That has to be scary. David: Yeah. And we had, the first number of years for the parade, we had what we called peacekeepers, and it was people that would march on either side of the parade to you know, in case there was gonna be some trouble or something. And, of course, there were police around and everything. But I remember that one of the local fundamentalist churches standing in front of or next to city hall holding up a coffin because this was during AIDS and everything too, and, you know, with signs and stuff like that. So that was the kind of stuff we had to put up with. Horrible. Taylor: Was your experience with the pride parade ultimately very positive? David: Yeah. It might be hard for some people, especially if they're not part of a group that is kinda marginalized, to feel the power of all that of being there. And then as the years went on, it sort of became an event that people knew was going to happen, you know, one of the first Saturdays in May. And so there would be some years, there were, like, tens of thousands of people Yeah. Downtown. So, it's just like this big celebration, and it was very empowering. Previous Next

< Back Francesca's Story Follow Francesca as she shares her spiritual journey as a follower of Saint Francis of Assisi, inspiring her devotion to uplifting others around her while spreading love. 00:00 / 03:47 Julia: “What person or entity in your life has been the most influential for you?” Francesca: “For me, I grew up in a difficult family, but a friend invited me to go to church with her and they taught us how to become followers of Saint Francis of Assisi, and he became the most important and most influential person to me. It was fortunate that I had that happen to me, just by chance it seemed like.” Julia: “Do you want to talk a little bit more about the process of finding him as that influential person or kind of what he meant to you?” Francesca: “Well I had already had my first communion. I had gone through all the training and the catechism and everything, but none of it meant anything in my heart. And after my first communion I was attending a church that was a national monument, that was gorgeous. You walk in and there’s paintings all over the ceiling, and everybody went because it was such a beautiful church and everybody went to show off their clothes. And I didn’t know what I was doing there, you know? And then my girlfriend said, you know, come to my church you’re gonna like my church, it’s fun, we have the beat music, guitars and everything. So I decided start going over to her church. And when I went, at first I said why are there no paintings, there was nothing, you know, there was nothing. And they said ‘It’s a Franciscan church and Saint Francis wanted the churches to be simple.’ And then they said ‘You can come on Friday afternoon, we teach all about Saint Francis.’ So I went on Friday afternoon, and they would teach us all about Saint Francis, and then they would teach us about the problems we were facing today - how would he tackle that? And we would have to go home and do homework and bring it back the next Friday. And then after we worked all together as a group, after we worked, then we would have time in the courtyard and it was a beautiful, beautiful courtyard. And we would have time to play. And they were teaching me, then I understood finally. So Saint Francis became my ladder to God, because before I hadn’t gotten any of it, you know? It was all up here, but it wasn’t in my heart. I couldn’t find a consistent church near me, so I go to a Congregational church. It's important to me to be able to serve and to be able to belong. So I started going, and I started serving, and it's important to me, and it's also important that Saint Francis always had to uplift the least of the least, you know, always make sure that you can help them. Like if they’re homeless, whatever. Help them. Help them. Help them, you know? Don’t leave people stranded behind, you know? So that was really important to him, and it was important that we stop reading the Bible, stop reading all the books, and do it. Get out there and do it. So that was really big for him. So I try to be as active as I can. Whether its part of my church or not, I try to. If I see someone who is homeless, I stop and talk about whatever they want to talk about. Saint Francis became really meaningful to me, he made sense to me, for love to exist. For love to be the most important part of living your life." Previous Next

< Back Pat's Story Pat speaks about her journey in Little Falls, Minnesota. Here, she went on a profound healing journey and learned the power of forgiveness. While in Little Falls she met a special friend who showed her what she had been longing for. 00:00 / 04:43 So this was a bit of my experience at Little Falls. Every day in the time I was there, there was profound healing experiences, there was all kinds of exercises some would say exercisims ya know where I went back and new relations to my parents wrote letters to them from me and to them umm and I felt like okay Ive done this already ya know I have gone through all the hell of my childhood. Was this really worth the airfare? Um well as it turns out it really was okay so after I wrote letters about my rage and hurt I wrote letters from them to me explaining why they were such a mess and why they were such awful parents and that was a killer I could begin to really understand how miserable their lives were the empathetic ya know writing these letters was very powerful at the end of it we had a big ceremony to burn all of the letters letting them go, watching the ashes rise float away which was providing us with a bit of healing and a chance of freedom I hope. So after breakfast, we got our coats on and we were asked to line up outside no explanation of why the sisters who lived there the residents came out and walked our line, handing each of us two red carnations cynicism was creeping into my mind our assignment this was so weird was to walk in a line all 30 of us in silence to a cemetery that was on the property and once we got to the gate of the cemetery we were to disperse and find graves that might have been those of our parents whether they were actually alive or dead we would lay down our carnations and say a final goodbye okay for some reason this struck me absolutely ridiculous, ludicrous and as I watched the 29 other walk into this vast catholic cemetery to find their parents quote on quote parents graves I refused to participate I was rebelling enough already Ill show they I just stand here after some time I have no idea how long I got bored standing there along and decided to walk in and wonder amid the graves I hadn't walked 100 feet when I looked down and what I saw in this catholic cemetery in this monastery were 2 gravestones side by side with Jewish stars this was too weird to be a coincidence so I stopped I knelt down for a closer look and something broke in me something big it was like flood gates opened as I started to do as I was told and say goodbye and complete my assignment I started to sob I mean serious unstoppable sobs like years and years of sobs and as the tears fell on my carnations I felt such deep sadness for them, my parents, for me for lost opportunities for all those years I felt really sad my mother had died young at 60 well before I had developed any understanding of her pain and the loneliness that caused her behavior and Id never be able to tell her I understood and was sorry for my contributions to that I never had a chance to tell her I really loved her I have no idea how long I stood there sobbing years and years when suddenly I felt this very gentle arm around my shoulder a gentle touch which brought me back and I looked up to see that tiny frail indian women in her street clothes who looked to me for support earlier that week holding me with a beatific smile on her face she gently helped me up and held me for a few moments she said she'd been worried when she didn't see me back at the house and became worried for me And as she held me and she stroked my hair I'm crying just thinking about it and told me that she loved me and in that moment I experienced unconditional love for the first time and I understood that above all else thats what id been weeping for. Previous Next

< Back Betsy's Story Betsy talks with Brenda about a spontaneous trip that changed her life. She talks about her wonderful experiences and a noteworthy figure that she meets on this trip. Returning from her trip, she decides to pull inspiration from her time away when opening a small store in Northampton. 00:00 / 04:58 Previous Next

Freeman remarks on his decision to retire and how retiring has allowed him to grow as a person and start new things after his career. He later elaborates on the ultimate goals and appreciations he has for his life and his message for others when considering the path of their own life: “think of the long ride, not the short journey.” Freeman's Story Freeman remarks on his decision to retire and how retiring has allowed him to grow as a person and start new things after his career. He later elaborates on the ultimate goals and appreciations he has for his life and his message for others when considering the path of their own life: “think of the long ride, not the short journey.” Freeman's Story 00:00 / 04:39 I’ve been retired amazingly since 2013. It was really easy for me, I mean the part that was. First of all, I was really ready to retire. I turned 65. I was going to retire. Principal asked if I would stay another year just to help with transition. I was happy to do that. But I knew that I wanted to do other things. I loved what I was doing. I loved the students. Great way to end my career. But I was ready. I wanted to try other things because my father died at the age I am now. You know you never know how long you have. I was healthy and I wanted to take advantage of that. So fortunately as a teacher in a public school you have a pension. And that made it possible for me to retire. It was easy, and I had a long list of things that I wanted to do. So I started to study Yiddish. I started to teach myself guitar. I started playing chess. I started playing tennis indoors which I had never done before. And I was doing some consulting. So I was plenty busy and I joined the Northampton Arts Council, cause I wanted to contribute to the community in which I lived, not just the community which I had previously worked. And when I was looking at possibilities and things to volunteer for, I was looking at different committees and councils. I noticed that the head of the arts and culture department was a guy named Brian Foot and Brian Foot was a student that I had when I was teaching at Chestnut Middle School in Springfield in the 6th grade. And so that made it even more appealing to get to connect with Brian who was a wonderful young man in 6th grade and now has contributed a great deal to Northampton Arts Scene. It was good to be a part of that for a few years. I am still doing similar kinds of work because I joined an organization called Friends of Northampton Trails and part of the work that we are doing is to promote arts in the neighborhoods in Northampton so that feels good. Right now, I am the secretary, so one of the things I do is take minutes which in some ways is a good thing because taking minutes at least for me means I can’t talk as much so I have to listen better. So that always is a good thing to practice. What I am aware of is that this is a good time for me to spend more time listening. You know I think the most important thing is just being more attentive to what’s around me. Just having an awareness of my environment and not always being active but sometimes just being an observer, just appreciating, just being able to slow down instead of waking up at 5:45 and getting to work by 6:30 or just living more slowly. Looking at the news, playing chess puzzles, and then being able to just have the days evolve. You know that’s such a privilege to be able to do that. And really of all the things that upset me, the fact that I am aware that so many people don’t have this. And I have health, you know so. Being healthy. Having a loving partner. Having loving children who want to be involved in our lives. There’s not that much that I really need. You know I am one of the fortunate people, I mean its crazy that people who are not wealthy, like we are not wealthy, but I have, I had a pension. Its crazy that people don’t have that, and can live a reasonable life. I can’t do whatever I want. I can’t travel the world. I can’t buy anything I want, but I don’t need any of that. I’m fine. And life can be good. You know, I mean I think in times like this when the world seems to be spiraling in so many different crazy ways, its good to know that not everything is damaged. And that the most important thing is being able to expand the number of people who experience that. To live a good life, a quality of life where you are not just working. Life should not be just about work. I mean that’s not what we are here for to do. It’s about caring for each other you know and appreciating the diversity around you. And I am one of the lucky people who have been able to get to that point. And I hope that I can be able to continue it. For me the intention is, is good things ahead. Just take care of yourself. Think of the long ride, not the short journey. Previous Next

Gail's Story Gail's Story 00:00 / 04:26 Well, two of the most important people are Harold and Eleanor Chase. They lived across the street from us when our kids were young. They were in their late seventies. They became our third set of grandparents. Mrs. Chase used to make rolls every Thursday for the kids so they’d pop out of the oven and my children would enjoy eating them sitting on the steps. And Mr. Chase used to save cereal boxes and he would cut all of the colors out of the cereal boxes and he would use them to make cards for our children. If their birthday came, they would open up the mailbox and take out an envelope. And when they opened the envelope, out popped Mickey Mouse holding a dollar! And he would do different characters and it was really very meaningful to them. Mr. Chase was a retired carpenter before the Depression came. He always was interested in doing something. So he helped us, refinish our attic area for a bedroom. He was so exact that he could count out the exact number of nails he would need to do his job. He asked if he could put a roof on our house at one time. And in order to put supports for him to kneel on, he took coffee can and he flattened it out and put it up under the roofing tile. And he then put a piece of wood that he hammered on there so that he could lean on it. So he was very creative. Now they owned a trailer and they would take their trailer to Rocky Neck Beach in Connecticut. They left their trailer for us for two weeks. so we could go and enjoy it. And we had quite a good time with the children. They were always doing things for us. They were most important because of their giving of themselves, especially to our children. Mr. Chase sat on the curb with my son and taught him to read fluently at age four years of age. He and his wife were, they were a good pair. He would go up on his roof to fix the roof and his wife would stand on her porch outside and bless herself or genuflect because she was afraid at 80 years old he was gonna fall off the roof. Now they have impacted our life, my life, and my husband's, and their warmth was contagious. We became close friends, very close friends with them and later helped them in times of need. He gave me the key to his house and he showed me where all of his important papers were and where he kept his money. And after his wife had died of Alzheimer's and he had taken care of her, he said to me, ‘I have done in life what I've needed to do. I will not live much longer.’ So he had told me that to check his porch and within two weeks, I would see the paper was still on it. And I of course said to him, oh, you're gonna be fine and we're gonna help you. Well, in two weeks, the paper was on his porch. I went into his house and found him in his cellar - he had had a stroke and he was still alive, but…not very much. So I called the ambulance and the police and he was airlifted to a hospital in Worcester where he spent the next maybe two weeks and he died. For me, he and she were the most important friends in my life. And I would like to see, in this day and age, I would like to see a lot more Mr. and Mrs. Chase's as neighbors, they were perfect. Previous Next

Diane talks about how her goals and ambitions are constantly changing throughout our lives. Diane and Victoria discuss how they have changed throughout lives, and what has remained constant. The common thread for both women is their strong mothers. Diane's Story Diane talks about how her goals and ambitions are constantly changing throughout our lives. Diane and Victoria discuss how they have changed throughout lives, and what has remained constant. The common thread for both women is their strong mothers. Diane's Story 00:00 / 06:01 There were eight of us in the household and I was child number seven out of eight. So I would describe myself as kind of the weirdo, you know my older sisters were very responsible and my younger sister was the beautiful baby right so, I was sort of the I mean not in I don't think this in a bad way, I just think that it was just sort of like I had the opportunity to sort of I didn't have a lot of responsibility and I didn't have to be the baby which also is a sort of responsibility. So yeah I got I got to be a little loose as a child, and I was you know, I colored a lot and collected leaves and things like that. When I was young, I wanted to be with lots of people all the time and I wanted to make food and have fun. I didn't know how to turn that into a money-making career, I just wanted to be with people very social as a little person but, that changed a little bit when I became a teenager. I became far less interested in being social in being with my family even. I withdrew a little bit. I sort of indulged in the quirkiness a little bit more and then then maybe was healthy for me my family was still there even though I kind of took a wander but, I it was at that point I did start thinking about careers and things like that and like could I be a social worker or could I be someone who listened? Because I am a bit of a talker, still. I am chatty, let’s just face it. I’m a Chatty Cathy but I wanted to learn how to be a listener and maybe take some of that into work that was helpful work to individual you know. I was never really very interested in making money I think I wanted to make a difference. You know the other thing that we spoke about once was that tape measure principle of like if you pull out each inch and you know at 10 everything that you've done by 10 inches and then 20 inches, what have you done and I'm like okay here I am at 60 inches, so far from you know that 6 year old self who was collecting leaves, and how much more time do I have? Do I have another 10 years or 20 years and do the years make a difference? And I decided after our last conversation that I want my legacy to be that I went sort of day by day. I want it to be that I just took each day and I tried, I didn't try to be happy I don't I don't necessarily want to try for that I want that to be the end result of what I do, so I I think, like you, I'm I probably smile too much I might be insanely happy most of the time but, I think that you know I think for me it's really turning into the small differences. The kindnesses and the little bits that add up to what I hope will be you know a legacy of well she didn't she wasn't terrible you know I mean I think that would be enough for me and that’s all right. It is okay and I learned that from you and and our conversations because I see it in you as well. So often you said to me, it is one thing everyday. It is at least one thing everyday and I thought wow this is this is actually harder Victoria but it's much more fulfilling and I think it makes a greater impact then holding back or not doing because there's lots of opportunities for it and I appreciate that insight into your vision of the world cuz I'm trying to put it into my vision of the world. So I guess that would be my legacy. So I know one thread that we shared was was our mom's. I don't know if that's one that you were thinking of at this moment. It was with great joy that I was able to tell my mother that I was participating in this project and she was interested to know about it. Then she died at 99 years old and after a very good and rich and wonderful life and it really meant a lot to me to be able to share that with you. I'm getting a little choked up now but it was sort of like she was really she was always curious she always wanted to know what was around the corner or why did you do that or what are you eating today or any of those things. It was really a lot and I think that it was a big part of my healing process was talking with you and you were very patient and listening to every single story but it was a big thing for me to be able to also maybe think and talking with you and some of the questions and the places we went it was like okay so maybe a part of my legacy is continue Dorising and to share with other people like you. What Doris was, what she did and how like she was kind, you know like your mom and we shared that. That’s part of the good thing, we can talk about anything, you and I. it's not necessarily a passing of a torch okay but it was a little bit of you gave me the like “you can do this Diane you can take this on” and I really appreciated that cuz I think I was feeling sort of bereft and alone and I wasn't and you showed me that. We Dorised together though. We turned her into a verb and we did it and I hope someday to get to tell your mom what you've been in my life. Previous Next

< Back Meredith's Story 00:00 / 05:26 My name is Meredith Young. And when I was 12 years old, my father gave me a Polaroid camera and told me just get out and explore. And, and we didn't have a TV. A lot of other children thought that's really weird. You're missing out on all these, you know, really cool, you know, get smart TV shows. But my father took us once a week to the movie theater. So, for college, I went off to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore where I majored in molecular biology. And, by end of freshman year, I, heard about of course, I could take sophomore year, there'd be a visiting filmmaker in Baltimore who under the sponsorship of, the head of the humanities department. And I did a brief interview with doctor. Maxey and I got accepted into this filmmaking workshop and I would get course, of course credit and help out this filmmaker who was filming in Baltimore. And yes, this filmmaker, there were classes during the week where you learned filmmaking techniques. You know, he taught us about directing and being a cinematographer versus a director and roles and all that. And as part of the course, every Saturday for the whole semester and you knew this going in, and they only, it was a very like only like 12 students in, in this course. Every Saturday I'd hop a bus from Johns Hopkins to Downtown Baltimore and go to a different part of Downtown Baltimore. We would be filming one scene of this film for that Saturday. And as a student participant, they paired us up with a union electrician. I was gaffer number two and was responsible for the lighting from one particular angle and the other students would, would be in different parts of the space, the recording space. And I was young, but I missed out on traditional college girl stuff of, you know, but I didn't care. I was, I was psyched. I met creative people. The director of, this film saw that, you know, that I was really dedicated, that I was, you know, that I was showing up. And he said, you know, you should join the Maryland filmmakers association. And I said, I always, as a child, I always thought that being a filmmaker meant being the director or the cinematographer. And I'm like, I'm just doing the lighting. And he said, the director said, when people see this film, they're gonna see the light reflected off the actors faces in its light that you shown on those faces. He says, you are a filmmaker. Eventually, I found a regular full time job, out here in Western Massachusetts that was looking for somebody with my educational background. And, and another thing to help, I found out after they hired me on my resume, I mostly played up, you know, what I, but I've mentioned at the bottom that I was a member of the Maryland filmmakers association and had been a judge on the Baltimore international film festival, which all still exists. And the president of the company saw that, and he had ambitions of creating a media department within, the building. So that kind of sealed the deal when he brought me in. So, you and I have talked a lot about, how it's important to be in touch with both your more artistic side even as, like a STEM oriented academic person. Do you wanna talk any more about how, about how, addressing both sides of of, like, your needs have, kind of ended up in positivity in your own life? Oh, it's totally, both in high school and in college and in at every stage. My unconscious brain knew that I needed to do both. I knew I needed to earn a living, which is where having the stem in the finance background helps pays the rent. But the other, you know, a lot of me knew that to keep my sanity, you know, that what really pumped me up wasn't making money. It was paying the bills and then going out at night and just getting involved in the whole art scene, in, in North Hampton. There were students like me who really need that other, that other part of your life. It's something that really gets you psyched up, you know, like, okay, I need to be a responsible person and earn income and live an independent life. Previous Next