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Question

Oral history interview

 

 

 

You need to find your oldest living relative OR oldest living relative of a friend OR someone from a retirement home. They MUST have lived through and have memories of World War 2 or the Great Depression or even earlier memories are great as well. You will conduct an oral history interview with that person. You will ask them pointed questions about their life and experiences. You will then compile their answers into a 6-8 page narrative.

 

 

 

Subject History Pages 4 Style APA

Answer

The beauty of old age is at times vested in the memories that are collected over the years through the different experiences that people go through. This has been the case with Mr. and Mrs. Richardson who have been married for 65 years since 1954. Despite their old age, the couple remains joyful and excited about the life they have lived since they first met. Primarily, based on their life experiences, Mr. and Mrs. Richardson appear to be very happy about their successes and the achievements that they have made over the years. Ideally, throughout their life together, they have learned to accept and participate in different activities to keep their life entertaining and exciting as well. Being migrants in the United States, it was interesting to learn more about this couple and their experience in transitioning from life in Europe to the United States. The basis of the interview was to learn more about the couple’s experiences during World War II or the Great Recession and any period before that. Hence, based on the interview conducted, the period that was significant was the Second World War which both lived through in their childhood and the relocation from Europe to the United States.

The life experience of Mr. and Mrs. Richardson runs back to the 1940s when they met as young adults. However, each has a different experience about their childhood. Mr. Richardson began by explaining the meaning behind his name Jim Richardson. The name Richardson was a combination of the perception that he was Richard’s son while Jim was the English name that he was given. He was raised in a farm in Alabama where he also went to school and graduated from high school in 1942. His graduation from high school is considered to be a significant achievement and he spoke proudly about it. Ideally, he was among the smartest students in his group thus the emphasis on the achievement is carried with significant pride. It was after his high school education that Jim went to serve in the army. The first point of service was to receive training in Mississippi. The training was intense and prepared him for the next stage which was to serve in the army fully and deployed to participate in the Second World War. The deployment thus sent him to England where he served and met his wife. It was during his stay in England that the couple met at a tea party. As would be expected of young adults, Jim and his wife had a quick connection and a friendship started instantly. This friendship was further cemented when his father-in-law took keen interest in Jim as the son he never had.

Mrs. Richardson’s father lived through both World Wars. During the First World War, he was however considered too young to participate in the intense war period and thus served through the war conducting simple tasks. Nonetheless, he still took pride to have been part of a significant period in the history of England. Hence, meeting Jim who had served in the Second World War was a factor that excited Mrs. Richardson’s father. It is through meeting of Jim and his father-in-law that Jim got the opportunity to interact with his wife constantly through the many dinners that he was invited to by the family; his father-in-law also facilitated for the development of the friendship between the young adults as he would insist on going to the pub with Jim and this created a positive relationship through to the period that Jim married his daughter.

Mrs. Richardson was essentially born in England and thus moving to the United States with her husband was among of the biggest decisions that she ever made. She is the youngest of her siblings with elder sisters who have been married to different parts of the world such as Norway, Spain and Australia. Growing up, she lived through the Second World War. This was the period when Germany was up against England and, therefore, constant threats against either country were common during the time. As a child, the threats were often overlooked and did not spark much alarm. However, when the sirens went off one day, the cause for alarm ceased to be the commonly referred to problem. Her parents were not at home at the time when the sirens went off and, therefore, she left home to head to the pub where her father was. At the same time, her parents were also heading home so they met on the way to go home. Their home, being near a factory that prepared ammunitions, the occurrence of blasts was thus anticipated. However, the bombing of their home was a totally unexpected and in a moment, everything was lost in a single blast. The bombing of their home forced them to reside in the shelters up until when they could manage to move to the outskirts of Liverpool where they stayed.

The period during the World War was difficult and characterized with the Germans hitting the region almost every night. It was a period of constant fear and uncertainty over whether they would be hit or not. Essentially, having to live through that phase as a child was difficult as one was unaware of the gravity and how far things would escalate in one night. They had already lost their home in one blast and, therefore, due consideration of the fact that any place could be next was a constant thought. However, on the D-day of the war and when the blasts ceased, it was a moment of relief. Mrs. Richardson described the period as one that saw many people celebrate to the extent that a party was held on the street to mark freedom and the end of the war. Despite the losses that had been suffered, people still found the energy to celebrate and mark the period as the beginning of a new era and the fact that they could resume their normal lives without fear of being casualties. Mrs. Richardson’s was enthusiastic in her description of the period as though to reflect that she too was relieved and equally surprised by how the people took the news that the war was over.

It was after the war that Jim and his wife moved to the United States after getting married in 1954. Primarily, they first landed in New York in 1955 and Mrs. Richardson’s first expression was that she was ready to go back home due to the desolate appearance of New York City. They drove to Oklahoma and as they moved into the countryside, they finally reached a point that she described was empty. Nonetheless, this has since been the place she has called home. Eventually, she accepted the United States as a place that she could call home and reside with her new family. Despite being very far from home, Mrs. Richardson was able to adapt to the United States and became accustomed to its culture. Ideally, she blended well and one would not really consider that she was from another region of the world. Her sisters had been married off to other regions of the world and thus created a large pattern of diversity in her family. This has exposed her to different cultures and given the couple the opportunity to travel to different parts of the world as they visit their relatives. While Mrs. Richardson has been able to learn basic French, she barely speaks any other foreign language. Nonetheless, she takes great joy in the diversity that she has experienced even in the United States. Further, her relocation to the United States has also given her siblings the opportunity to visit the region thus travel across the world.

The relocation of Mr. and Mrs. Richardson to the United States marked the beginning of a new life after the Second World War. In the United States, they started a business which Mrs. Richardson is very proud of. Over the years she would have her nieces from Australia come and help her with the shop and thus have a moment of various experiences with her family in different ways. The business has been successful over the years and it has been a source of income. Their marriage has been long lasting and they were blessed with two children a son and a daughter. However, Jim and his wife do not have grandchildren. This is because their daughter was married for 13 years but divorced without having a child. Their son was also married once and also got a divorce and never considered remarrying again. Despite the fact that they do not have grandchildren, Mr. and Mrs. Richardson are content with the life that they have lived. Their experience since their childhood was a strong foundation to prepare them for a good future. Mrs. Richardson actually described that their life after the war has proven to be a good future. Her appreciation of the moments that they have shared in the past in Europe and in the United States shows complete contentment with life without regrets.

The interview ideally came to an end with Mr. and Mrs. Richardson appreciating their life together. The journey down the memory lane was practically beneficial and they enjoyed narrating their story which was nothing short of interesting and informative. The World War, despite its negative effects on the lives of many, became the platform in which a story of love was born and developed. While some decisions may be difficult to make, Mr. and Mrs. Richardson made it seem easy to go through the different phases to the point in which they are enjoying old age together. The United States has become a comfort home for both and they are highly intrigued by how their future turned out to be an exciting period.

 

 

 

References

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