HELIOLITH

I just got home from giving my friend his birthday present. I brought him to the Story Corps sound booth in Grand Central Station and interviewed him. His stories and my questions are now part of the Library of Congress. I have been planning this for about two weeks, and I got super nervous right before hand. I started to wonder if he was going to like it, or if he would feel uncomfortable, or self-conscious. The exact opposite happened. He was calm and cool, completely relaxed; I was giggling and hyper. The fellow who facilitated our interview was named Michael. He jumped in a few times and asked a couple questions of his own, reaching further into the answers. We now have a cd of our interview.

You know how when you hear yourself later after leaving a message on someone’s answering machine?
And your voice sounds like you’re about twelve years old and talking through a toilet paper roll? I hope I don’t sound like that. His voice was really nice, calm and smooth. Usually I’m the one who, when we spend time together, talks and talks and talks. I can’t get enough of my own voice. He just listens, responds when I let him get a word or two in edgewise, and nods. He says he likes listening to me talk. This was so neat, because I finally piped down and listened to him. He had so much to say. He just lit up.

Michael, do you remember when Grandpa used to come down to Dad’s house? How he’d just chill on the couch or at the breakfast table, all quiet and sleepy? How reticent he was? And then how he stayed up late that night with you and me and your camera, talking on and on about everything he’d been through? He was just waiting to be asked. This was sort of like that. I could’ve spent all day in that booth.

I am starting to have a whole list of people I want to interview. Mom. You. My girlfriends, Amanda and Meredith. Teddy. Ralphie, the homeless guy from the L train. I asked Michael (the facilitator) what his favorite interview was that he’d seen. He told me about these two people who came in yesterday. The interviewer was from the ACLU, and the other fellow had been illegally detained for over 24 hours. He used the interview as a piece of material that he hoped to use to generate a stack of evidence against the police. The man had been picked up outside a rehab center. He said the cops just hang out there and pick up people who go there. (Way to encourage people to get help. Thanks NYPD.) There must be a million amazing stories.