This Smooch! Archive photo, Mary luvs Oshea, illustrates a major theme underlying The Smooch! Project effort: That amazing human ability to generate forgiveness and reconciliation. The story of Mary Johnson and Oshea Israel is a hugely compelling one, but there is no need for me to tell it here. You can hear it for yourself by checking out the intro trailer for the new film about The Smooch! Project (appropriately entitled SMOOCH) under development. Watch it and you'll find out just how remarkable these two people are -- and how surprising their relationship. Would you be able to forgive the person who murdered someone you loved? Personally, I am not certain I could but I am inspired by the fact that it is possible, because Mary found a way to do it. Mary and Oshea have begun sharing their remarkable story of reconciliation and healing with others through a ministry-based organization called From Death to Life, which welcomes all mothers dealing with the loss of murdered children.
The story I wanted to share today is about another member of From Death to Life that I photographed that day for The Smooch! Project. Angel Cradle has no relationship with the man who murdered her son Duane. When we first met to plan the Smooch! shoot, she asked if she could bring her granddaughter. "Of course, of course," I assured her with a smile. Two days before the shoot, she emailed me to say she had changed her mind. "Would it be OK if I brought the urn containing my son Duane and smooched that instead?" she wrote. "Of course, of course," I replied, as my heart suddenly felt far too small for the chest it was sitting in. What a beautiful gesture. What a poignant photo, as you can see here.
Angel and I worked hard together to capture this image, entitled Angel luvs Duane (deceased). The beautiful inscribed metal urn containing her son's ashes was quite heavy, but Angel managed to heft it with grace. The lighting typically used in Smooch! shoots created glaring reflections. Resolving these technical challenges required two separate photo sessions. Angel was very accommodating. During our time together, she told me about her son and the circumstances of his death. That was hard, too, but we managed to find some ease as we struggled to capture an acceptable photo. "Did Duane cause you trouble when he was growing up?" I asked. Angel gave me a puzzled look. "Because he's still doing it now!" I said, and we both lightly laughed. It was challenging for Angel to speak about Duane. Even though it had been several years since he died, thoughts of that loss still bring her much pain. I was greatly struck by Angel's willingness to share her story, her home, her time with me. It's people like her, like Oshea, like Mary, who are literally demonstrating to the rest of us how to become a better human. More compassionate. More generous. More forgiving. And, ultimately, more happy, despite the challenges that life throws our way. I was blessed to meet these remarkable people.
And about that film called SMOOCH
How lucky The Smooch! Project is to have captured the interest of award-winning filmmaker Dawn Mikkelson! You can find out more about her work at her company website, Emergence Pictures. As you might imagine, Dawn gets a lot of film ideas pitched her way. But making a movie requires a years-long commitment. So how does she choose which idea she's gonna go with? By her personal litmus test. Dawn knows she's found a personally-compelling film idea when, in her words, "I wake up at 3am in the morning and obsess about it and have dreams about it!" You can hear her discuss her background, creative focus, and her enthusiasm for the new SMOOCH film in her 10,000 Fresh Voices interview for community radio KFAI. (While you're there, you can also listen to my smoochy KFAI interview here, where you'll also hear from three members of the 2010 Smooch! Project Dream Team.)
Yup! There are Twin Cities' Smooch! shoots coming up
February is, of course, an important month in Smoochland! We've decided to offer two open-to-the-public Smooch! shoots -- details are in the calendar to the right. If you've missed past opportunities to participate in The Smooch! Project and have a hankering to publicly smooch a loved one, now's your chance!
0 comments:
Post a Comment