The object that I chose is a photo album that my grandmother created in her lifetime. The photo album was passed down to my family and me after my grandmother passed away in 2022. The pages were surrounded by a soft midnight blue leather case with another appearing shade of a lighter blue. It held a vintage look that was detailed in gold outlines with letters on the spine spelling PHOTO ALBUM. Inside those pages were years of cherished memories. As of now, the relevance of the photos shows the identity of my family history and belongings. My grandparents migrated to the United States to seek better opportunities and the search for freedom. She documented her memories in an important album to look back at these moments. This is where her collections of pictures express something significant. It’s the emotions, hardships, and experiences that can vary from others and historical events. Even though the stories share the same theme, they are never the same. My mother said that her mother-in-law cherished every moment with her family as to why she treats these photos with care. Looking back, my grandmother adored every experience she had in her seventy-nine years. Although I never looked through the album with her, it later connected us through the journeys that our family went through to be here. 

– Aliyah Vera

Relationship:  unknown unknown