Reconciliation

  • Dates
    2015 - 2018
  • Author
  • Topics Social Issues, Contemporary Issues, Documentary
  • Location United States, United States

Reconciliation is an autobiographical story that is both introspective and retrospective as I look at my life today and look back to where I’ve come from. The main subjects in this work are my chosen family.

This autobiographical project has been nearly five years in the making and is on-going. My intent is to come to terms with and acknowledge the hidden scars of my past. Childhood was not accompanied by the usual troubles of youth. I was born to a poor Catholic family that never seemed to settle for very long. The first of many nomadic changes happened shortly after my birth when my parents moved from Oregon to Wisconsin. By the second grade, I had already attended nearly every elementary school in Green Bay, Wisconsin. As I approached the period where most boys are beginning their coming of age, I was shuffled between divorced parents and ultimately send away to live in a variety of institutions, shelters and a group home. This experience resulted in the effective loss of nearly four years of life, education and development to violence, gang influence, doctors, stiff beds, and medication. This pattern continued all throughout high school and only came to an end when I was finally old enough to set out on my own. During the two decades since, I found myself mirroring my parents by struggling with poverty and living a semi-nomadic life. All the while trying to rediscover what it is to feel, be a friend and a human being. My “rebirth” has relied heavily on an inner spirituality, close friends, mentors, education and forgiveness. While the accompanying work hints at this past and also gives insight into the current evolution of life as I know it. Through observing those closest to me, my chosen family, not only do my subjects help tell my story but also share their own personal triumphs and traumas, feelings of solitude and depression, and kinship.

© Jason Houge - Kayla and her mother, Lisa, wait for me to release the turtle. Marinette, WI 2015
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Kayla and her mother, Lisa, wait for me to release the turtle. Marinette, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - The site of the now demolished hospital I lived in. Green Bay, WI 2015
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The site of the now demolished hospital I lived in. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Bedtime story with Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2015
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Bedtime story with Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Justin stayed with us for a few weeks after he left the hospital. New Franken, WI 2016
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Justin stayed with us for a few weeks after he left the hospital. New Franken, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - One of many late nights at the laundromat. Green Bay, 2015
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One of many late nights at the laundromat. Green Bay, 2015

© Jason Houge - Kayla and I visiting Justin at the hospital two days after he was hit by a car. Green Bay, WI 2015
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Kayla and I visiting Justin at the hospital two days after he was hit by a car. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Taking Justin to see his doctor. Ashwaubenon, WI 2016
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Taking Justin to see his doctor. Ashwaubenon, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - The cold November night we found ourselves stranded until the end of the year. Green Bay, WI 2015
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The cold November night we found ourselves stranded until the end of the year. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - One of Kayla's frequent headaches. Green Bay, WI 2015
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One of Kayla's frequent headaches. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Kayla on Wednesday Morning. New Franken, WI 2015
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Kayla on Wednesday Morning. New Franken, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Thifty Last Supper. Green Bay, WI 2015
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Thifty Last Supper. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Having coffee with Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2016
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Having coffee with Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - Christmas breakfast with my stepdad, Pete, and his fiance, Lana and Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2015
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Christmas breakfast with my stepdad, Pete, and his fiance, Lana and Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - Evening drive with Justin and Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2016
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Evening drive with Justin and Kayla. Green Bay, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - A man prays at the chapel where the Virgin Mary appeared in 1859. Champion, WI 2016
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A man prays at the chapel where the Virgin Mary appeared in 1859. Champion, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - Bathtub Madonna, Kayla. New Franken, WI 2016
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Bathtub Madonna, Kayla. New Franken, WI 2016

© Jason Houge - Kayla and her mother's Hello Kitty. Marinette, WI 2015
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Kayla and her mother's Hello Kitty. Marinette, WI 2015

© Jason Houge - The first blizzard of the winter. New Franken, WI 2015
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The first blizzard of the winter. New Franken, WI 2015

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