A photo series on memory. The series focuses on the idea of memory and how it can be changed over time. Each photograph represents a story told by my grandmother. The accompanying text tells the story, written by me from the point of view of my grandmother.
The Egg
Money in the Milk Pail
The Bike Ride
My Grandmother was the strongest and kindest woman I will ever know. Her life was full of challenges I cannot imagine experiencing myself. Else grew up in Nazi occupied Norway and came to America on her father’s ship at the young age of 11 years old, forced to leave behind much of her family and all cultural familiarity. Naturally, my sister and I were fascinated by this adventurous life. Growing up, my grandma would tell my sister and I stories of her childhood in Norway. The country was a fantastical place in our young minds and her stories gave us a glimpse into the wildly different childhood she had. Each year my mom would take my sister and I out to New Jersey for summer vacation and for two whole months we would get the best bedtime stories every single night. We would beg my grandma to tell and retell our favorite stories each evening and refuse to sleep until she told “just one more”. My grandmother unfortunately lost her memories to alzeihmers when I was around 10 years old and passed away in 2019 so the stories she told to my sister and I are left to only our memories. Though she told them over and over my memories of the exact details have faded and warped. The premise of each story is true, but it is likely that the scenic details and little elements have changed in my mind since I was a kid. I did my best to recall the stories and I hope that one day I can pass along my grandmother’s bedtime stories to my own children and grandchildren.
