Capturing Fading Memories

All my life I've been captivated by the stories that have taken place at different stages in Grannie Annie's life: her childhood, young adulthood, middle and old age. Hearing them from her now, at 85 years old... it's like witnessing the full circle of a life.

I've noticed in filming her over this past year that holding a conversation with her is sometimes challenging - she'll start to talk and within a minute loop back on the conversation and start it again from the top. Other times she'll go off on a completely unrelated topic from which we started. She can't always tell you what happened 30 minutes ago, but she can tell you every detail of exactly what she was wearing the night she met my grandfather at a barn dance in Seguin, Texas nearly 70 years ago.

Last night, my sister-in-law, Donna, and I had a heart to heart. Donna has a bit of knowledge about Alzheimer's and some of the things she said ring true for Grannie Annie. I'm not well informed on Alzheimer's so I don't want to jump to conclusions... but it forced me to confront the reality of Grannie Annie's current physical and mental health.

I slept last night with a heavy heart with this conversation weighing on me. But it did make me extremely grateful that I had begun filming her and her beloved stories when I did. Before she went to bed I curled up in her lap as she sat in her rocking chair and asked in a small voice, "Grandma, tell me a story." On the spot she invented a story about how she had a little baby girl and when she grew up, a little elf brought that little girl her very own magical baby girl. I cried as she spoke and prayed that the moment would never end.

Road Trip!!!

Well, most of the road on this trip will be on the way to the airport ~ Grannie Annie wouldn't do very well in a car from Texas to Atlanta. If you've ever taken a road trip through Texas, you know most of the journey is just trying to get out of The Lone Star state.

Tomorrow, Grannie Annie and I are flying out to spend the Thanksgiving holiday, which also happens to be her 86th birthday, with my brothers and parents. This will be our 2nd trip together; the first was a 12 day excursion in the summer of 2007. I hadn't spent that much solid time w/ her since I was her little Yankee granddaughter coming to visit during my summer vacations.

Our trip in 2007 was enlightening and a motivating force in me finally getting serious about filming her like I always said I would. During this trip I saw her differently than I did as a child. As an adult, I was surprised to discover how much alike we are in many ways. This got me to thinking about the stories I've heard her tell and how much they've dominated my psyche. That's led me here, to making this documentary about her influence and the power of storytelling.

Another thing about the 2007 trip that surprised me ~ my awe of her scared me into quitting smoking. You see, she isn't your typical "cuddly grandma". Oh, she's very loving, but she'll tear you up too. I had been struggling to quit for years, but when this trip came up I was so afraid of her withering disapproval I stopped cold. When I came back from the trip, it was out of my system and have been nicotine free ever since. One more thing I owe to her. Now, I hid that I smoked from her, so if you talk to her please don't rat me out! I'm telling you, I'm kinda scared of her.

So here we go ~ another adventure w/ Grannie Annie! Some around her fear this may be her last trip. But not me ~ I'm convinced she'll live forever. Either way, for this journey, I'm armed and ready w/ my camera!

Grannie Annie: "I feel like a blog" and Balancing Film and Family.

I spent this past weekend at Grannie Annie's. I always take my camera with me, but this weekend I was attending a funeral for a soldier killed in Afghanistan and didn't have the strength, emotional or otherwise, to take my equipment or to film.

While attending the funeral I was absolutely moved by the show of support from the soldier's hometown, Yorktown, TX. Those who didn't fit in the church lined the streets for miles with flags and signs of love and gratitude for this soldier. I'm not kidding, they were lined up for miles as we made our way from the church to the cemetery. The whole community showed up; the whole community grieved. It was a surreal event to witness. Having only the camera in my cell phone, I snapped pictures - all I could think was I wanted our soldiers overseas to see this and know how much they are loved and I wound up putting them together in this short video. (Click here for video)

From putting this simple video together, I am reminded of two things: 1/ to not be afraid to take risks and just jump in and make the film (despite having to improvise and shoot on my cell phone and edit in just a few hours) and 2/ despite living in Texas for over 15 years, I am still awed by the beauty of life in these "small" communities.

Back at Grannie Annie's house and with no camera with which to film her, it turned out to be one of the best times I've spent with her in a while - I was able to just "be" with her - which reminded me all over again why she's so special. When I'm filming, it seems I'm always concerned about the shot or the sound and kicking myself for missing something and hoping she'll do it again. I've had a number of offers from other filmmakers to come down and shoot for me, but I've been concerned that a stranger with a camera in her house would kind of wig her out. But on the other hand, she seems to sparkle a bit more when she has company - plus, there is much to our interactions that reveal a lot about her and her influence on me.... hmmmm, one of the major themes of Grandmother Storyteller.... hmmmm, I'm talking myself into something here....

While visiting with Grannie Annie I mentioned that she now has a fanpage on FaceBook and her very own blog. "A blog?", she responded, "well, that's about right, I feel like a blog." I love her way with words.

Sorry, I know in my 1st post I told you Grandmother Storyteller is a lighthearted documentary and these last 2 posts have greatly concerned death. But if I've learned anything from Grannie Annie, it's that life isn't always easy or fair - but it's important to maintain your sense of humor, even when you feel like a blog.

War

My great-grandfather served in World War I.

My grandfather served in World War II.

My father served during peace time.

My fiance is currently serving in Ghazni, Afghanistan.

To save money for a wedding dress, my great-grandmother, Gertrude, picked cotton. She was later swindled out of that money by her own brother.

I got the news today of an attack on Chris' unit which took the lives of 2 soldiers who were also husbands and fathers.

I take refuge in knowing that my grandmothers got through war.

Bettie had never realized how round the world really was. Time was a wheel turning and the same spokes kept coming round, familiar and predictable and personal. War had taken the boys away again.... it seemed that they had been through a war just the other day.

--- From True Women by Janice Woods Windle

My First Post

I've been filming my documentary, Grandmother Storyteller, for well over a year now. I've shared the concept with several friends and fellow filmmakers, but for the most part, I've kept it "under my hat" as it is a very personal story still unfolding. When I do share what I'm doing with others, however, I am consistently overwhelmed by the enthusiastic responses I get.

Today was a rather pivotal day for me and it was made quite clear that it is time to start sharing the idea of the film with a wider audience. So here goes...

Grandmother Storyteller is a lighthearted documentary in which I film my grandmother, Annie Lou Elder Morris, (or, as she as affectionately known to her grandchildren, Grannie Annie), doing what she does best: telling stories. Many of the stories are outlandish, you know, the very definition of a Texas Tall Tale. Some of the stories are funny and some are shocking - but since I was a small girl, I've always found them mesmerizing. I think maybe it was because I was born and raised a "Yankee", just outside Philadelphia, that I was particularly captivated by her stories as they took place in Texas with a setting and a people that seemed so wild and untamed and so incredibly foreign to northeastern urban dweller like me.

The irony of it is that, though they seemed foreign, they also felt familiar - these were tales after all of frontier people whose blood now courses within my own veins. I don't know if my grandmother realized it or not, but as she spun these tales, she gave me the very threads for me to weave the fabric of my own life... in her colorful way, she let me know where I came from and with that, she has given me the tools to forge ahead where I want to go.

Grandmother Storyteller is about more than just Grannie Annie's influence on me, however. It takes us on that universal journey that we all make, from our origins to where we are today. When I share with others what I am doing they always tell me, "Oh, I wish I had done that with my grandmother!" If you've ever had the desire to capture your family's story, my hope is that Grandmother Storyteller will inspire you to do so.

Of all the things Grannie Annie may leave me when she passes, whether it be pieces of china, or since we're talking Texans here, a rifle that has been fired by 4 generations of Texas women, the most valuable legacy my grandmother will leave me are, her stories.