Finding the Humor - An Interview with Dad
Kara Square
Something occurred to me while listening to this interview… and you’ll hear it… my Dad and I laugh a lot. :)
This is a pretty typical conversation with my Dad. The only difference is that I have a list of questions, I repeat some of them, and many are specifically relevant to this project. My Dad has frontotemporal dementia (FTD). He still has his (wonderful) personality, remembers us, and enjoys life. I love him so much and feel incredibly fortunate. Still… this is a heartbreaking and often trying disease. Devastating. This interview took place on a good night. He’s not always this aware. I edited some things out… about a half hour worth. Too much to share… too personal, intense, or offensive.
I am grateful that Music for Healing inspired me to do this. Not only is it a beautiful snippet of my Dad’s voice and thoughts, but he enjoyed doing it! After recording, he listened to the entire thing with the recorder to his ear. He loved hearing his stories played back in his own voice. He kept agreeing with himself and noting that he and I are funny. :) It was a wonderful moment.
I have 2 versions for you. The preview (‘Partial Interview’) is a composite of all the project related questions… stuff about memory and music. It’s about 18 minutes. The ‘Full Interview’ is about 40 minutes. The FLAC files were huge, so I cut them into parts.
The buzz that you’ll hear every now and then is his chair. It helps him get up and down.
This is a pretty typical conversation with my Dad. The only difference is that I have a list of questions, I repeat some of them, and many are specifically relevant to this project. My Dad has frontotemporal dementia (FTD). He still has his (wonderful) personality, remembers us, and enjoys life. I love him so much and feel incredibly fortunate. Still… this is a heartbreaking and often trying disease. Devastating. This interview took place on a good night. He’s not always this aware. I edited some things out… about a half hour worth. Too much to share… too personal, intense, or offensive.
I am grateful that Music for Healing inspired me to do this. Not only is it a beautiful snippet of my Dad’s voice and thoughts, but he enjoyed doing it! After recording, he listened to the entire thing with the recorder to his ear. He loved hearing his stories played back in his own voice. He kept agreeing with himself and noting that he and I are funny. :) It was a wonderful moment.
I have 2 versions for you. The preview (‘Partial Interview’) is a composite of all the project related questions… stuff about memory and music. It’s about 18 minutes. The ‘Full Interview’ is about 40 minutes. The FLAC files were huge, so I cut them into parts.
The buzz that you’ll hear every now and then is his chair. It helps him get up and down.