Woo! I interviewed my grandmother for forty-five minutes (Actually longer because we talked after we stopped recording)... and I was able to condense that down to my favorite stories (About 7 minutes). I hope you enjoy it!
Presentation: Interview Link
Reflection:
1. What was the purpose of your interview?
The purpose of the interviewing of my grandmother was to learn more about the stories in her life. I do know a good amount about my grandmother, but she hadn't shared a huge amount of stories about herself before the interview. I don't think that is because she didn't want to, but I think it's because people didn't ask directly for them. I knew some of the stories before the interview, but having this interview made her go into more depth and explain herself more. It was extremely interesting.
2. What were the questions that led to the best parts of the interview?
Some questions that led to the best parts of the interview include, What experiences as a young person have been useful all of your life?, Did you ever have any bad experiences you will never forget?, and Has there been any excitement that you remember well? The whole interview was forty-five minutes long, but these questions helped lead to the best and most prominent stories that I included in the short presentation.
3. What does this project tell us about the job of an interviewer or historian?
This project tells us that an interviewer or historian must use excellent questions and word choice to dig deeper into the meaning of the stories or get more details - More than just the summary. An interviewer must also stay engaged throughout the whole interview. This way, they can develop follow-up questions that can continue on with an interesting story instead of letting the interesting part "die down" and stop. Another thing that an interviewer or historian must do is get background knowledge on the subject or person before researching or interviewing more. I know a good amount about my grandmother, since she is one of my guardians in my life. Before the interview, we briefly discussed possible outlines on how the interview should be laid out. The most important things for an interviewer or historian to do is stay organized and stay paying attention.
4. What did you gain from this experience?
I gained a lot more knowledge on my grandmother. She has been through so many exciting, rewarding, and rare experiences! I also have gained a little more respect for her, even though I respected her so much before. From hearing some hardships that she has gone through, especially the rat story, and how she has been a bold person has affected the way that I look at her. She seems like a must stronger person. It has also made me reflect on my life. I am sometimes too shy that I lose the opportunity to succeed in other things. I must be bold sometimes, like my grandmother, in order to make it far in this world.
5. What was the best part of the interview in your eyes and why?
The best part of the interview, in my opinion, was when my grandmother was talking about her heritage and growing up. (I didn't include it in my presentation because it is very long). I learned a lot about her mother's influence on her and how her mother was. I didn't get to know my great-grandmother that well because she lived in Wisconsin and passed away over five years ago. I had known that my grandmother's mother had always been extremely harsh on her and had favored her twin brother. It really hurt my grandma, but I think that is also partly how she has become a bold and courageous woman today.
6. If you were to tell your great-great-great grand-kids one story, what would it be?
Hmm... I love telling stories! There are just too many in my head! One that I would choose about me would be when I was five years old... The summer when I was five, almost six, my mother and father put me in a race. The kids' race was beginning, and I was lined up aside from my cousin, who is one year older than me. When the gun went off, we started sprinting. I was extremely small for my age, especially from being a gymnast, so the other kids over-towered me. My cousin found one of his friends and started to run diagonally towards him. I was trying to squish through the rest of the kids, but a large boy tripped me on the gravel, and I fell knees first onto the street. I noticed my shoe was untied while I was examining my fresh wounds. Once I finally got up, after crying in my head from falling down and falling behind (I am a HUGE competitor!), I noticed that the streets were bare. There were no kids. No one. I was a little frightened, but I decided to keep running. I caught up with a woman, and we started to talk. I found out her name is Kathy. She asked me where I came from and why I was running on this street, but I didn't know. After we started talking for awhile, I started to feel a little more comfortable. Once a few minutes passed, a man on a bicycle, a policeman, strolled up to my side. He asked if my name is Alyssa Ragner, and I said that it is. He rode away while Kathy and I were both confused. (We later found out my parents were looking for me since the Kids' Race had ended.) We started to run faster until we were next to a couple of men. We turned a corner, and I saw my parents yelling for me to RUN!!! I sprinted as fast as I could through the finish line. What I really remember is how my heart was beating so fast that I felt like I was going to faint. (By just telling this story my adrenaline is rushing!) Once my parents caught up with me, they gave me huge hugs and asked what happened. I honestly didn't know myself, but I explained that after I was tripped, I couldn't find Zach, my cousin. (That got him dirty looks from everyone - He was supposed to be with me the whole race.) We started to walk to the car when an announcer called my name. It turned out that I had won the women's 5k (And I beat all the men LOL). I received my trophy (Actually it's a Plate), which I still have to this day. I will always remember that story. Even though I fell down, and was disappointed at first, I got back up and continued on with my "voyage" and finished with something completely unexpected!
7. What kind of legacy do you want to leave with your family?
I want to be known as a person that could pretty much "do-it-all." This sounds kind of snobby or that I have a large ego, but I just want people to know that it can be done. I've had some hardships in my life, as I know everyone does, but I have pushed through those. I have not given up, and I never will. Hopefully, one day, I will be a well-known author or musician, and my family can be proud of me for that. I also want to be known for my loyalty for my family. I will never, EVER, let any one of them fall down and not get back up. I always put everyone else before me, which hurts me a lot sometimes, but it is just the kind of person I am. Just like my mother was. This will be random... But my dad thinks that the "workaholic" attitude of my mother was a huge factor and cause of her cancer. I have that same behavior... It worries him. It also slightly worries me. I want the legacy of me to be that I was the "little girl that could.. and did." ...Without getting cancer :).
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