Nov 28 2017
The Great Thanksgiving Listen
Johanna Learns the Importance of Relationships from her Grandpa
By Johanna
I, Johanna chose to interview my grandpa, Mike for my “Great Thanksgiving Listen” project. Mike is my dad’s dad and I love spending time with him, he is a very interesting person. I interviewed him on Thanksgiving Day, which was November 23 this year, at his house in Oregon. I chose to interview my grandpa Mike because I know that he has been a lot of places, done a lot of things, and influenced a lot of people in his life. I also know that he is very wise, and I think that people could learn a lot from him. The final reason I wanted to interview him, was that I wanted to know more about his story, and what makes him “tick” as a person. During the interview we mostly talked about his favorite places, most influential experiences, some of his different experiences with his work. However, he ended up sharing a lot of personal, and deep information about his early marriage. I think this was a really good experience for both of us, because he got to share and I got to learn.
Photo Credit: JH Photographie Flickr via Compfight cc
This photo relates to the interview, because this is a site in Oregon, and my grandpa lives in Oregon and really connects with the outdoors. Also, this picture shows that, sometimes there is more to something than you knew, like how in the day you would never know that there were stars, but then at night they all appear. This is what I found out about my grandpa during this interview, there’s more to him than I ever knew, or would’ve know if it weren’t for the interview. This photo also reminds me of how my grandpa has a lot of years and a lot of wisdom, kind of like the stars. Finally, my grandpa is a light in the darkness, like stars in the night sky.
Full Interview in Storycorps:
Johanna and Mike’s Storycorps Interview
The Great Thanksgiving Listen ended up being a much more influential experience for me than I thought it would be. I ended up learning a lot and making a much deeper connection with my Grandpa that I had before. I learned a lot from him during the interview. A few things were that you need to cherish the people around you while they are with you. Also, that one of the most important things in a healthy relationship is balancing what each others needs are, and caring about how your actions make the other person feel. He said that he found this to be true in all of his relationships, even with his Pediatric patients. I also learned a lot of interesting things about him, and things he loved. Through this, I found that we have a lot more in common than I thought, which is great. My favorite thing that happened in the interview, was when he shared with me something that he said he’d told very few people. It was a very emotional, and personal subject for him, so I was very honored that he shared it with me. Over all, I think that the interview went very well, and it was good for both of us. My dad said that my Grandpa was very honored that I wanted to interview him, and I’m very glad I chose to. I wish that we’d had more time for the interview, but I definitely think I will interview more of my family members, because I feel it’s a very rewarding experience.