Good People, Good Light
The Goldmans
Staying connected across distances is no small task, but for the Goldman family, it’s a labor of love. From FaceTime calls and handwritten postcards to treasured photo books filled with family memories, Junna and Matt found ways to keep Emi close to her grandmother, no matter the miles between them.
Brandon: Your mom is all the way on the other side of the coast—how do you make sure Emi stays connected with her? And beyond just staying in touch, how important is it to you that they build a real bond despite the distance?
Junna: We facetime a lot, we also cherish the photos you took. We write her notes and postcards, we plan trips to see each other. She also made books with photos of all of our family members and we love to look at those when we are reading books every night and we recount stories of memories Emi has with my mom, it's impressive how good her memory is.
Brandon: Did your family take a lot of photos when you were growing up? And now, as a parent, how do you see the role of photography in capturing the everyday moments with your own family?
Junna: I think they may have taken less photos, but took the time to print them and make more albums.
I was home recently and looking at old photo albums of my family and was so happy to share them with Emi that I want to make more printed books of photos for her to be able to look through. I have always loved taking photos, but it feels even more important to capture every day moments as you watch your child grow and change so quickly. I think these photos of our family are important to us now, to our daughter, but also all the people that will become our family for future generations.
Brandon: Are there any family traditions—big or small—that you and Matt are excited to pass down to Emi?
Junna: There are cultural traditions that feel important to share now with her so she knows where her family came from. It's not so much a tradition, but learning different languages and spending time every year growing up abroad was a huge gift our parents gave to us- for me with Japanese and my husband with Italian. We have been exploring how we can pass that gift on to our daughter as she grows up as well.
We love sharing all of the things we love with her, art, music, food and we are creating new traditions together- we open the window together every morning and say, "Good morning world, I love you so!", we try and go on family walks every day, we share highs and lows of our days, every night before she goes to sleep, we read books and talk about what happened throughout the day. I love building these little daily moments with her, it's so bonding and fills my heart with gratitude and hopefully will do the same for. her.
Brandon: What’s the best piece of wisdom your mom has given you—the kind of advice that’s stuck with you and shaped the way you move through life?
Junna: My mom always encouraged me to be brave, to try things, to be positive, polite and kind to others. She would also sing "Que sera sera" when things would get sticky as a way of saying things don't always go your way and that's okay, you just move through it and keep on going.
Brandon: What’s something about your mother—whether it’s a habit, a way of thinking, or even just a certain look—you catch yourself doing now?
Junna: Kids are like parrots and they say things that they hear you say and it makes me realise I have so many of my mom's mannerisms, the tones in the way I talk and sing with her, her playfulness and am always trying to embody her patience. You learn so much about yourself and reflect on how you were raised in becoming a parent and your appreciation for your own parents grow as well in such a beautiful way.
There are also funny things like the fact that my mom has a loud sneeze and so do I which means Emi might end up with one too!
