A Life Shared

-Exploring the interview process and life histories-

"I guess you just have to follow your heart- 

go with it with gusto- and make it work. 

I'm outrageously fortunate that I can do something

that I really enjoy and get paid for it,

and I've landed into a place where they'll honor me for it." 

 About this project:

       Our life history/ self narrative class decided to interview non-teaching staff at Hollins University as a way of learning about the interview process and also to share the lives of those who many might overlook. We each did a series of individual interviews and then discussed during workshops how the process was going and sometimes shared the  stories we had heard. The project unfolded into something different for everyone; we each have new stories- some we can share and some we might not, but one thing remains the same- we have each created something new.

  About my project:

     During the semester  I interviewed two people about their lives and  experiences at Hollins. I discovered that my first interviewee was uncomfortable with the project and do to personal reasons had to withdraw. Though this initial interview did not go as planned I learned more about someone I have worked with for years. I am grateful for the time that he gave to me and hope someday to be able to continue talking with him and learning about his life. 

    I am currently working on interviewing an other member of the Hollins staff and am looking forward to continuing our conversations. Unlike many of my classmates; I am interviewing someone I have come to know very well in the three years I have been at Hollins. Over the past few years our relationship with each other has grown in many ways and I have learned so much from this person. Though I do not have permission to share with you my actual interview I can tell you how it has changed our relationship and my opinions of this influential person in my life.

    The interview process was hard for me; I didn't want to make anyone uncomfortable. For my first two interviews I spent most of the time making sure that the person was ok with what I was asking. This process made the project much harder- I became so concerned with making them feel comfortable that I lost a lot of what I was being told. It was after my second initial interview that I was told that there would things she would talk about- I just hadn't asked.

   I didn't really understand why it was so hard for me to do- I mean  I've known this person for three years- I'm certain she knows more about me than most people do. As we talked about the process I realized that the reason I was so afraid was that I wanted, more than anything, to show everyone who this person really was. I wanted people to see the person I had come to know so well and what I truly  wanted was for them to understand. I already knew many of the stories I was told during these interviews and I'm sure I'll here them again-  I think in a way I've been working on this for years.

     I believe with every conversation, every dinner together and every moment spent- that I was learning a life history. Recording it was so difficult because I had it all with me already; I had heard her life story and she had heard mine. Perhaps the most significant thing about this whole process was that now we were a part of each other's story.  I think that the point of this project was not to write it all down and keep it for posterity, but to understand that every person has a story and if you take the time to listen you might learn something you never knew.

    I am extremely grateful for this experience and for the time shared with me. I think that it was only after working on this project that I realized what a life history can be, and how it changes both the speaker and the listener. 

    When I first began this project I was ask : "Why me? You already know everything- just write it all down." yet by the end she was giving me suggestions on what to ask and just recently asked if we were going to continue. I suppose we will- perhaps with the questions and the tapes, or perhaps just through each other.

~My thanks go to all who helped with this project: To the class for being supportive- To professor Costa for the chance to have this experience and most of all- To the those who shared their stories with us.~ 

by Leah Gardner