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A visit from my grandfather, Miss Corinne, and great-grandmother for my high school graduation. 

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I was lucky enough to meet Miss Corinne when I was about 12-years old. She's my grandfather's partner.

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Miss Corinne was born in New York. She moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico and this is where she spent most of her life. Currently, she's 72 and resides at our family ranch where she shares every day life with my grandfather.

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Miss Corinne pictured with one of her students. 

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Miss Corinne's profession is something that's always stood out to me. For about 25 years, she worked with students who have special needs or learning impairments. Corinne is also bilingual, so she had the ability to work with Spanish-speaking students.

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Miss Corinne captured on the day of the flamingo event. 

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Age 10-12: At a young age, Corinne described herself to be a bigger child, with lots of height, and typically dressed in pleated skirts. She shied away from public attention, until one day she was forced to face it.

On a cruise with her family, they took a stop in the Bahamas and visited a zoo. The zoo had an exhibition dedicated to flamingos where they praised their gracious, yet large size. At the exhibition, they asked for volunteers to come near the flamingos. Miss Corinne had no interest in doing so, but her mother volunteered Corinne. Horrified, Miss Corinne faced the flamingos, and suddenly they began flocking her way.

She recited this story in a comical manner, explaining that while it wasn't funny then, the moment actually supported her in later life.

Miss Corinne explains that she feels teaching is like being at the front of the stage. Without this incident, she might've never gotten over that reluctance and been the wonderful teacher that she was.

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Miss Corinne had a memorable student, Rachel. Rachel was a young student with Down Syndrome.

Each morning with Rachel could've been a struggle, as Rachel refused to leave her mother and enter the classroom.

However, Miss Corinne wasn't going to let this stop her. Every day, Corinne had to get on her hands and knees, pretending to be a dog, in order to get Rachel inside. Seeing this, Rachel would willingly enter the classroom.

Miss Corinne says this was a valuable lesson in her teaching, she truly learned that for all students, and students with learning impairments, it came down to patience, willingness, and a degree of comedy.

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Corinne had a student, Andrew, who was around 5 or 6 when the two met. Andrew was born without impairments, but at 13 months old was thrown into a wall by his father. This led to severe brain injury and it was said he'd never get better. He wore a helmet but hated it. Oftentimes, in Miss Corinne's class, he was allowed to take this helmet off. Although, he banged his head in class, leading to helmet use again.

One specific day, he was purposefully banging his head a lot, and he cried. Miss Corinne then came to him, asking him if it hurts. He replied, "Yes", and she said, "Don't do it then". Andrew never wore a helmet in her class again after that day.

Miss Corinne explains how this sequence of events outlines the value of simple structure in her profession.

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Corinne's parents pictured with her children at Kirsten's graduation. 

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Miss Corinne expresses that watching parents age can often be a frustrating, complicated experience. She advises that when frustrations arise, to take a step back and remember that it's often OUR problem with their aging, versus their own problem.

As her mother once said in a heated interaction, "I can do whatever I want, I'm 75".

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Miss Corinne holding her son after his graduation and her daughter, Kirsten, on the other side. 

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A piece of advice from Miss Corinne is that we should be watchful about saying, "My kid(s) never do anything!". A lot of the time, she explains, they are doing things but they might not be easily noticeable. It's important to work extra hard to see the things they do, increasing our overall gratitude.

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Miss Corinne stated that she finally understands what fellow friends mean by, "Older women are invisible and ignored". She feels actively ignored in this society.

Here's her real-life example...

Corinne has had an issue with her Social Security for the past year and a half. Whenever she speaks with them, their explanations are filled with excuses, and she's blown off. She's also attempted to contact her state's senators, yet has gotten no response.

This is truly a showcase of how she's experienced such "invisibility". This issue, likely with a quick solution, has been put off not only by our own government agencies, but by figures who're supposed to represent and support their people.

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A common theme that Corinne has experienced from others is the belief that she's no longer observant or has visual ability.

She believes this societal belief is generally wrong. Despite her age, she mentioned how she was still able to notice the decline in my grandfather's hearing. This recognition isn't something easily noted by people who are less observant.

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Miss Corinne explained that there's a societal belief that, "Older adults lack the ability to have an engaging conversation".

She finds that living in a smaller community as an older adult, her interactions often feel dry, lacking true stimulation. "One questions if their brain is still working", she concludes. Through these experiences, she's made the connection as to why older adults are likely to grow depressed. Miss Corinne has seen society's ageist tendency to shut out older adults.

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Miss Corinne emphasized society's belief that older adults have and serve no purpose. Again, through experiences, there's a sense of belittlement.

Though, Miss Corinne shares that she actually feels more purpose. She expresses that she has the true time to sit down, meaningfully pay attention, & invest in listening. This ability covers every aspect of her life and has only grown her sense of purpose.

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As a little girl, Miss Corinne remembers government and presidential figures. Moreover, how they came to be. Everything was recognized to be an orderly, aligned process, with the emphasis of The Constitution.

However, in current time, Miss Corinne expresses that she senses we've lost our ways. Miss Corinne highlighted the gradual, yet notable change that we've lost some of our Constitutional values and practices.

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A highlight from Corinne's childhood was watching an array of communities in New York come together, yielding a human "melting pot".

Similar to constitutional values, she's seen a decline in human action to interact and intertwine with a spectrum of different folks. She feels that a lot of influences around us are leading to a separation in society.

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One notable memory from Miss Corinne was how she watched various political and social movements occur as she was growing up. She experienced first-hand how many American individuals fought hard for their human rights.

At this time, she explains that she feels like we're going backwards because the earned rights of many humans are being threatened and slowly taken away.

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Miss Corinne shared that she vividly recalls President John F. Kennedy's death. She recites how his tragic death hit the American society and how everything around her was constantly filled with this news.

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Similar to lots of Americans, Miss Corinne remembers the event of 9/11. She watched the horrifying fear spread throughout our country within seconds, and how it was something that individuals carried with them moving forward.

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A significant part of Miss Corinne's growing life were the justice movements all around her.

She remembers the consistent movements for Women's and Black Americans' rights. These were notable shifts in the U.S society which she feels has shaped the country we are in today.

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Throughout her life, Miss Corinne has discovered an appreciation for various corners of music.

For the past 25 years, country music has been her go-to genre. It's fitting because she has a love for country western dancing. She also found interest in the band, Queen, because of the movie, "Bohemian Rhapsody".

Corinne grew up listening to lots of rock music. She enjoyed the infamous bands: The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.

A song with a special love for Miss Corinne is, "Mustang Sally".

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A memorable piece of media was Mr.Rogers and his show, "Mr.Rogers' Neighborhood". Miss Corinne often watched this show with her children, but as she's gotten older, she says it holds different meaning.

Looking back, she says she can reflect and relate to numerous messages and themes written within the show.

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Miss Corinne rocking a pair of jeans as she posed next to her brand new, red sports car.

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Reflecting on younger years, Miss Corinne recites various styles of clothing. She remembers participating in the popularity of broomstick skirts, often paired with a leather jacket and boots.

Vividly, she recalls how in high school, she only wore skirts and dresses. It wasn't until college that she had the freedom to style jeans or pants.

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A wonderful picture from Miss Corinne's college graduation. 

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Miss Corinne with an undeniably happy grin at her high school graduation (1971). 

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Miss Corinne with her beautiful horse, explaining her love and appreciation for our family ranch. 

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Miss Corinne celebrates her daughter, Kirsten's, high school graduation.