#22…check and mark! (and some thoughts on photographing grandparents)

#22) Tape record/videotape grandmother sharing stories about how she and grandpa met

After my grandfather died in 2008, I was filled with a lot of regret. I had never taken the time to capture his personality the way I wanted to. Sure, there are snapshots of him in the years leading up to his passing, but I never took his portrait the way I should have. There was an afternoon shortly after he’d had hip surgery a few years before he died; I stopped by his house and brought him a bouquet of sunflowers and we sat together for over an hour as he told me stories. I can still vividly remember that day: his booming voice, the way light flooded the enclosed porch. So why didn’t I record those moments with a video camera to preserve them forever?

Because I had these regrets, I made sure to add video-recording my grandmother sharing stories with me on to the revised 101 in 1001 list I made for myself last March. And so, on a hot August day in 2010 shortly after Nick and I had got back from our European vacation, we made the annual trek up to my grandma’s lake camper. While Nick was out fishing, I spent an hour asking my grandmother all sorts of questions (and because I was worried I’d run out of ideas to ask her, I made sure to bring along a copy of the Proust questionnaire for inspiration). And then I asked to take her picture. My grandma played along; she knew why I was doing this, I’m sure.

Now, as I sit here and look at the images I took of her, the video I made (and edited together to share with all my cousins after her funeral), I am beyond happy I took the time to do this. That, this time, as much as it still smarts to lose a grandparent, I have these memories I can hold on to of her final year with us.

Whether you are a goal-setting type or not, I have to say you must do something like this with your loved one(s)—be it older parents, grandparents, in-laws. It’s so easy to let time get in the way of a project like this, but making it happen will be a gift you’ll give yourself forever, I promise you.

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.