MY LIFE IN 100 OBJECTS

The poet, feminist, and activist reflects on the objects that have shaped her life.

Inspired by Neil MacGregor’s A History of the World in 100 Objects, Randall (b. 1936) began looking at her life in terms of the objects that have shaped it. Often involved in struggles for social justice, she has lived a “turbulent, sometimes endangered” life. This thought made her realize that places, as well as objects, have made her who she is today. A prolific writer, Randall’s aim for this book is to journal her “life to date, through objects, places, and the moments in which these converge.” She continues, “objects and places come with their histories. Together they give tangible form to mine. And as they have done so, that task has super­imposed itself upon each individual item, imbuing it with a collective power that references identity, time, and place.” Her collection includes poignant reflections on her father’s metronome; a portable typewriter in “a pre-digital era. We, not our phones, were expected to be smart”; her fake Mexican passport, which she purchased in 1969 while trying to make her way out of the country to Cuba; her Sandinista certificate; papers related to her 1984 U.S. deportation hearing; a Pentax camera and photographs she captured during her extensive travels around the world; a faded pair of Levi’s and turquoise earrings, which have “become part of my everyday uniform” at home in Albuquerque; and the gold wedding bands she and her wife gave to each other when they were able to legally marry after living together for 28 years. Each entry begins with a full-color photo, and interspersed throughout the collection are poems written to commemorate certain objects. Randall’s hope was to show us “how the objects and places that move us breathe their life into ours.” In this, she certainly succeeds.

A heartwarming celebration of the author’s compelling life.