On Monday, March 29th, 2021 my family buried my Nana and Tata. My Nana passed away 2 years ago, but my family decided they would wait to have her ashes buried until my Tata could be with her too. I would like to share a few words that my Tia Yoli spoke that day at their service: “We all have such loving memories of mom and dad. My favorite memory is when mom got home from the hospital and as soon as dad saw her, he quietly walked over to her. Without saying a word just hugged her. I rarely ever heard them say I love you to each other, but that day I felt how strong their love for each other was.” 

In this project I capture the relationships in my family, focusing on moments around the youngest generation. All of these images are printed and displayed on pieces of drywall. The drywall, along with the different elements decorating it is meant to represent not only that my family is what I consider home, but also that my family has been built by my grandparents. This is suggested in a literal sense through the family tree I included as part of the display, but is also meant to be figurative as well. My grandparents are not only the reason each of us are living, but through the relationships they had with each of us, they left pieces of themselves behind and helped to build who we are as people. Just as my Tia suggested, my Nana and Tata didn’t usually show affection to one another outwardly or make it known explicitly. So, you won’t find those forms of affection in these photographs either. Rather, they taught us that love is when we as a family are kind to one another, support one another, and show up for one another. When that happens, as it does in many of the photographs I’ve included, their legacy and love can be seen.