The Book

All good ideas start with a cocktail.

At a holiday party in December 2023, I was chatting with someone who mentioned writing their family history (the precise details are a bit blurred by the libations). I shared that I’ve often thought about writing the story of my dad and his three sisters, all of whom have different fathers (confirmed through some years of genetic testing and genealocial research). In each of the four siblings, different stories of colonialism, national/ethnic identity, and epigenetic inheritance/intergenerational trauma could be told. I was encouraged by my interlocutor to do just that. Overhearing our conversation, our host, my aunt, go very excited and said, “We need to talk.” It’s been my experience that this usually means another family bomb is about to drop. Mercifuly, she simply had visions of a screenplay based on the family story.

Alas, my social scientist researcher self is uncomfortable with creative license; narrative non-fiction is more my jawn. So, as the basis for a book, I recently started recording conversations with my father, moving chronologically through family photos as memory prompts. The conversations are largely fun, but sometimes hard. They will extended to my father’s only living sister, the daughter of another sister, my grandmother’s best friend who is still living, and others who can fill in gaps. I am currently devouring examples of narrative nonfiction/memoir hybrids; recommendations welcome.

Jerry Aponte, my father, second from left, with his uncles and cousin, Noumea, New Caledonia, c. 1944

My ancestors are always with me. So I am never alone. – Unknown

Marion Sellars, my grandmother, c. 1929
THE SCANNING PROJECT

Crikey

Given the subject of the book, the Aponte family photos and documents have been a scanning priority. My grandmother Louise gave photos to each of her kids, so groups of photos taken on the same roll of film may have been separated over time. Corralling these in one place will tell a fuller family story. Photos are currently in the custody of myself (my father has given me most of what was given to him), my cousin Danielle (who inherited them from my father’s eldest sister, Linda), my aunt Joelle, my father’s middle sister, some in the possession of my sister Bobbi, and others to be identified. My grandmother’s closest friend has been sharing some photos, and our family in New Caledonia have shared photos over time. Approximately 2,500 photos have been added to the database as of February 2024.

I’ve scanned well over 1,000 photos as of February 2024 in my mother’s family collection as well. My mother inherited a substantial photo and document collection from her mother (and that I inherited in turn), although her brother and sister may have some, to be determined.

There are no daguerotypes that I know of in either family collection. However, both collections include albumen prints, quite popular by the the 1860s. I’m rehousing the photographs in my custody in preservation-quality materials, and encouraging other family members to do the same. I have had to temper my museum archivist tendencies in the scanning process for the sake of efficiency and providing access (none of us are getting any younger!). You can read more about the decisions I’ve made and find advice about storing collections in dedicated blog posts.

3467

PHOTOS UPLOADED

And Counting

0

WORDS WRITTEN

Start Date: September 2024

16

COUNTRIES VISITED

Irrelevant and Not Enough

Suggestions?

Be Kind