Collected Item: “Melissa Gonzales Oral History, 2022/06/15”
Title
Melissa Gonzales
Who conducted the interview? List all names, separated by comma.
Kit Heintzman
Who was interviewed? List all names, separated by commas.
Melissa Gonzales
Email Address(es) for all interviewers. Separated by comma.
kheintzman@gmail.com
Use one-word hashtags (separated by commas) to describe your oral history. For example: Where did it originate? How does this object make you feel? How does this object relate to the pandemic?
#2Spirit, #7generations, #abortion, #antiquity, #boundaries, #breathwork, #cancer, #cat, #china, #curiosity, #death, #deathdoula #Duwamish, #embodysocialjustice, #environment, #family, #gardening, #gratitude, #grief, #griefcompanion, #griefsupport, #homelessness, #hugs, #Indigenous, #Italy, #masks, #meditation, #Mexican, #MexicanAmerican, #NativeAmerican, #nonbinary, #partnership, #pets, #reiki, #Seattle, #spirituality, #suicide, #tarot, #telehealth, #testing, #travel, #vaccine, #Washington, #wellness #yoga
What is the format of your recording?
Video
In what ZIP code is the primary residence of the interviewee? (enter 5-digit ZIP code; for example, 00544 or 94305)? In what city/town/village does the interviewee live? In what country does the interviewee live? All comma-separated.
Seattle, Washington, Land of the Duwamish
What is the gender of the interviewee? Be sure to allow interviewees to self-identify their gender in the pre-interview or interview. *Do not assign a gender identity to interviewees.*
she/her/they/them
What is the age of the interviewee?
45 to 54
How does the interviewee describe their race or ethnicity? Be sure to allow interviewees to self-identify their race/ethnicity in the pre-interview or interview. *Do not assign a racial or ethnic identity to interviewees.*
Mexican American, Native American
Describe the oral history.
Some of the things we discussed include:
Working as an end of life doula, grief support guide, Reiki practitioner, and trauma-informed yoga teacher.
Death positivity activism.
COVID hospital patients dying alone; helping clients connect with family in nursing homes in creative ways during lockdown.
Holding space.
Provide remote death support.
Giving up hugs.
First hearing about COVID in December 2019 through NPR, traveling in Jan 2020 and taking early precautions.
Watching COVID numbers like checking the weather.
Canceling an upcoming trip due to increasing COVID cases.
Living with a cat (Blackey Olive aka Blackstradamus) and strengthening their relationship; companion animals and love.
Telehealth visits, email correspondence with health care professionals.
Abortion, social justice, hate crimes, guns, environmental damage, gas prices, supply chains and scarcity.
Seattle and homelessness, wealth disparities, drug use, and violence.
Washington state’s COVID benefits.
Health among all living beings; quality of life across all stages of life.
Developments of health technologies and knowledge; diversifying the backgrounds of medical practitioners and expanding perspectives on health.
Developing healthy boundaries, mindful awareness about sharing space with others and transparent conversations about COVID safety and risk.
Needing to be safe before being able to provide safety for others.
Shrinking social circle, deepening intimacy with people of shared values and energy.
Getting support from friends, mother, cat (), and live-in partner.
Greater Seattle area as an epicenter of COVID hitting the USA.
Having easy access to COVID testing due to living near University of Washington University.
Global inequities in COVID knowledge, testing access, and vaccination access.
The resurgence of monkeypox.
The many micro-goods of the world aren’t making to the media.
Non-binary inclusivity.
7 generation thinking.
Virtual meditation and breathwork; outdoor yoga.
Remembering that historical actors had hopes and dreams and visions; the limits of the archive and documented experiences.
Other cultural references: Robin Wall Kimmerer, NPR, Amazon, Suffragists, Judith Lasater
See also:
https://www.ritualrevival.com
https://www.stonecirclescollective.org/collaborative
https://astralwell.com/
Working as an end of life doula, grief support guide, Reiki practitioner, and trauma-informed yoga teacher.
Death positivity activism.
COVID hospital patients dying alone; helping clients connect with family in nursing homes in creative ways during lockdown.
Holding space.
Provide remote death support.
Giving up hugs.
First hearing about COVID in December 2019 through NPR, traveling in Jan 2020 and taking early precautions.
Watching COVID numbers like checking the weather.
Canceling an upcoming trip due to increasing COVID cases.
Living with a cat (Blackey Olive aka Blackstradamus) and strengthening their relationship; companion animals and love.
Telehealth visits, email correspondence with health care professionals.
Abortion, social justice, hate crimes, guns, environmental damage, gas prices, supply chains and scarcity.
Seattle and homelessness, wealth disparities, drug use, and violence.
Washington state’s COVID benefits.
Health among all living beings; quality of life across all stages of life.
Developments of health technologies and knowledge; diversifying the backgrounds of medical practitioners and expanding perspectives on health.
Developing healthy boundaries, mindful awareness about sharing space with others and transparent conversations about COVID safety and risk.
Needing to be safe before being able to provide safety for others.
Shrinking social circle, deepening intimacy with people of shared values and energy.
Getting support from friends, mother, cat (), and live-in partner.
Greater Seattle area as an epicenter of COVID hitting the USA.
Having easy access to COVID testing due to living near University of Washington University.
Global inequities in COVID knowledge, testing access, and vaccination access.
The resurgence of monkeypox.
The many micro-goods of the world aren’t making to the media.
Non-binary inclusivity.
7 generation thinking.
Virtual meditation and breathwork; outdoor yoga.
Remembering that historical actors had hopes and dreams and visions; the limits of the archive and documented experiences.
Other cultural references: Robin Wall Kimmerer, NPR, Amazon, Suffragists, Judith Lasater
See also:
https://www.ritualrevival.com
https://www.stonecirclescollective.org/collaborative
https://astralwell.com/
On what date did you record this oral history?
2022-06-15T15:06