Telling my Story...

During my projects for this course, I was quite candid about my struggle with infertility. This is because to me, infertility is such a taboo subject among people - even today. I thought using digital storytelling tools to convey our struggle would not only inspire others, but also be very therapeutic and helpful for me. I wanted to post a blog entry with a poem that I had worked on recently, and I chose for it to be this one:

Lullaby to an Empty Womb

  Never has a child been so loved As you
Unknown to me and yet I do Know you
I’ve written lullabies to sing For you
Unsung yet sung so many times To you
  Where have you gone my precious one?
What has kept you from us so long?
Why don’t you want to hear my song To you? 
The tears we’ve cried, my little one
Cannot be calmed with any song
But I am trying to be strong For you.
Sweet angel please don’t be afraid
Your little cradle has been made
It’s safe to come and sleep
under My heart

I hope that through my blog, my classmates have learned about me, and that I have taught them something about creativity and expression, because they have certain taught me a lot about both of these things, and I want to give back to them in return!

Check out this Youtube video to learn more about infertility. It was done by a friend of mine and was submitted into a video competition for Infertility Awareness. It inspired me to write the poem above, and I hope it inspires you.

Telling Stories

There is fiction in the space between.

The lines on your page of memories.

Write it down, but it doesn't mean

You're not just telling stories...

~Tracy Chapman: "Telling Stories"

Why do I feel the need to share "my stories?" Obviously, for this course, sharing stories is essential, but even outside the course, I have now taken to blogging and vlogging? Is it because I like the idea that my thoughts matter to someone else besides myself? Is it because I want to have a way to look back on the lessons this life is teaching me as I go along? Is it because I feel I have some sort of insight to offer others who are reading my words? Maybe it is a bit of all three. Or, maybe, it is because I use these opportunities to tell stories; particularly in the digital form, as a sort of "free therapy" - a way to get out on "paper" the things I am thinking and feeling in my head.

Yes, I am sharing what is truth to me, but that doesn't necessarily mean my truth is shared by someone else. Does that mean that my story is fictional to others? Is it possible to accept someone else's version of the truth as truth all the same?

I was thinking about this the other day as I was listening to this song. My husband - an avid and very gifted guitar player has recently taken to learning Tracy Chapman songs and trying to get me to sing them. He asked me to choose my favorite and I immediately thought of "Telling Stories."I have literally heard this song at least 50 times because I was obsessed with it a few years ago. But, I have to say, the words have a new relevance and meaning as I've gained more life experience, and, in particular, while I have taken this course in "Telling Stories."

What makes a good story? What if your own truth is not that interesting. Is it ok to add or remove details to make it more dynamic and gripping for your readers or viewers? At what point does it cease being your story, and how do you even know what is truth? I guess you don't. You have to take the writer at their word.

Saying Goodbye

This past week was a difficult one for me.
After 23 years of serving at the same Church, my pastor was moved hours a way to a new Church to try and revitalize it.

Since he and his wife have no children of their own, Pastor BJ became somewhat of a father to all of us, but we have always had a special bond.

I have been going to his church for almost 11 years. He baptized me, confirmed me, officiated my wedding, presided over my grandfather's funeral, visited me in the hospital, gave my best friend and I a paid internship at his church one summer, drove me to doctor's appointments, attended my graduation and birthdays. You get the idea...

As one might imagine, after that many years of service in one Church, he has touched many lives and made a significant difference to many people. To commemorate his time at our Church, many "digital stories" were displayed throughout his final service. Here is one of my favorites.

This is not a new video - it was created by me and other members of our congregation for a service last year. However, it was replayed for my Pastor's final service because of the song and seeing all of his "children" together in one video.

My husband and I are deeply saddened by the "loss" of our Pastor, but recognize that things cannot grow if they do not change. It is nice to always have this video to remember him by. I am grateful that digital storytelling has made it possible to preserve and display these memories in such a creative way.

From the Inside Looking Out...

A couple weeks ago, I went to the zoo with my husband and a couple of our friends who were visiting from out of town. Even though I've lived in Syracuse for a long time, this was my FIRST time going to the zoo. I love animals, and often try to imagine what it must feel like to them to be on the inside looking out... I took several pictures from this angle.

I found Nemo...

And Dory...

Are YOU lookin' at ME?

I often wonder what it would be like to be the animals for a day... How would I feel to have tons of people staring at me while I sleep, eat, go to the bathroom, and try to cuddle my husband? I'm not sure that would make me very happy...

*photographs taken with permission of the animals at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo @ Burnet Park. :)

IMAGES OF SELF

Images of Self

I was given a name
I want to make it count for something.
I was given an identity I want to discover it.
I was given a purpose.                 
I want to fulfill it.
I was given dreams.
I want to chase them.
What do I see when I look in the mirror?
What do others see when they look at me?
What do I want them to see?
Who am I? Who do I want to be?

By: Jen Fujimori


My name is Jennifer.
My favorite scent is fresh cucumbers
My favorite color is orange - the kind of orange that has a depth and makes you wonder if it's really red.
My favorite drink is hot tea: Earl Gray to be exact.
If I could only listen to one sound, it would be the waves crashing on the rocks at Cape Hatteras
If I could only have one creative outlet it would be singing
I dream of being a Pastor one day.
The best part of life is the spirituality of it that can be discovered in everything if you look hard enough.
One word to describe me? Passionate!

Looking at these pictures, what do they say about who I am? What if I didn't explain what each picture represents? What kind of conclusions would you draw? Using Flikr, I typed in a word into the search engine and chose my favorite picture to represent each of the statements above. I then put them into Flickr software as an "images of self" collage.

Re-interpreting Scripture With Music

One thing that has always interested me is how artists will often use scripture, either directly or indirectly, as a way to find inspiration for their chosen medium. In particular, Christian rock musician Neal Morse uses scripture in a way that is roughly derivative and poetic in nature; merely hinting at the source, such as in his song Colder in the Sun:

"Mirror, mirror in the sky / I look to you / but you can't see me cry / sometimes you seem so far away"



But he can also be very direct about his scriptural inspiration as well. On his album titled simply "?", he recalls the Old Testament story of the building of the Tabernacle in the wilderness. As the story unfolds, he will indirectly reference scripture and reword it as part of the narrative. For example, in the song "Inside His Presence", there are many direct and indirect scriptural references:

And in this place of gold
The ancients walked this road
There is no death
There is no time

There is a love unknown
There is a scent of home
A rainbow wreath
A blazing throne

From a grave of stone
to a world unknown
From the smoke and ash
comes true life at last
Among earth and sod
the very life of God is here

From a list of laws
seeing all our flaws
To the blind, the lame,
we are all the same
Our High Priest has come
to make us all as one in Him



I find many of these lines to be very poetic and beautiful, like "There is a love unknown", may reference Peter 1:8-9, which states:

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Another favorite of mine is the triumphant line of "Our High Priest has come to make us all as one in Him. Galatians 3:28 has this to say on the matter:

"Here is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."

This is one of the most interesting things about Neal Morse and part of what keeps me listening to his music. He just doesn't just recite scripture or re-arrange classic Hymns to have a more modern sound - he reworks them to have universal meaning.

My name is Jen, I'm taking this course so that I can learn to express my creativity in new and diverse outlets, and many of these outlets are available in digital media. I am hoping to utilize collage creating software as well as some animation programs to tell interesting stories about my life.