New Mexico Mercury

This week we ask author Tanya Ward Goodman some questions about the creative genius of her father, Ross Ward,  about the cascading impact on her family of his early on-set Alzheimer’s disease, and about her superbly crafted and deeply moving memoir Leaving Tinkertown from UNM Press, 2014.

NNM: Your storytelling power has made Leaving Tinkertown one of those books readers return to, savor, and use to help understand their own lives. We wondered what access the book has given you to other families and healthcare communities  who’ve experienced both the torments of early onset Alzheimer’s disease and are working to find a treatment that works?

TWG: Since the book came out there have been so many opportunities to meet people in the Alzheimer’s community. I was able to tell my story and personally thank the staff of the Alzheimer’s Association in Los Angeles for the support I found there when my father was diagnosed. US Against Alzheimer’s is another amazing group working diligently toward a cure. I’ve connected with authors of other Alzheimer’s memoirs and found that we all seem to share a need to reach out to those currently going through the experience with a loved one. I’ve structured some of my larger book events to raise awareness and funds for the Alzheimer’s Association. Everywhere I go, people come to me with their own stories and I listen.  There is a big, ongoing, important conversation about this disease and there are so many strong, smart voices.  I’m just try to be one of them.

NNM: Your father, Ross Ward, had a unique genius for creating a world of his own that other people loved because that world welcomed their awe and delight. Tinkertown, the museum he made in the East Mountains behind Albuquerque, is about wondrous details, seemingly millions of them. Leaving Tinkertown is about details too. That’s what makes it so emotional for readers and so fascinating. Is there a link between how you wrote this book and how Ross Ward created Tinkertown?

TWG:  I didn’t start out to write a book.  I wrote to capture memories.  I wrote to hear my dad’s voice.  I wrote to sort out my feelings about our swift journey through illness and loss.  I wrote in bits and pieces and one day, I printed out all the pages and the resulting stack of paper brought tears to my eyes. Just as my dad had created a museum out of bits and pieces, I’d built a book.  Once I saw that pile of paper, I started to curate the episodes in the same way that my Dad built rooms for the dolls and the western town and the circus. My book grew to over four hundred pages before shrinking back down the final draft. It was a long process, but I think the only way I could truly tell this story.

NNM: What are your favorite stories about watching Tinkertown take form?

TWG:  It is hard to separate out one great story because the building of Tinkertown seemed to be a continuous narrative. My father created something new every single day. He was always drawing or painting or woodcarving –on the walls of our house, on the placemats at restaurants, on the back of a grocery list – anywhere.  I have very fond memories of being asked to lift the other end of a railroad tie or a big piece of plywood or even the back wall of a new building.  Dad always seemed confident that I would be able to carry the weight and this made me feel strong and useful.  It was a good feeling.

NNM: I get the feeling that Ross Ward was a wonderful father, checking under the bed for monsters, and taking care of your fears as a kid. I also get the feeling that something of that loving spirit endured through his disease. How would you describe your father’s character as it evolved from a man of creative genius to a man suffering from dementia?

TWG:  My father was a good man. He always recognized the good in others and was quick to encourage a creative impulse or celebrate an accomplishment. His enthusiasm for the world did not seem to wane with the onset of Alzheimer’s, but instead focused on ever more intimate details: a bright beetle shell, the feel of the dogs ears on his fingers, the faces of his loved ones.  Though our names slipped away, he was always genuinely happy to see us. He was a bright light and I felt the warmth of that light until the end. In fact, I still feel it.

NNM: Most of us find lessons in the lives of our parents, what is the key lesson of Ross Ward’s life from your perspective?

TWG: Dad always said, “the show must go on,” which I’ve loosely translated as “be flexible and enthusiastic.” My dad followed his heart as much as he could, using his artistic skills even for the boring necessity of making money. He lived a wonderful life, filled with good friends, art, adventure and true love. I do my very best to follow his example.  

Leaving Tinkertown is available at bookstores or directly from the University of New Mexico Press at www.unmpress.com or 800.249.7737.

Leaving Tinkertown Reading, Live Music, and Book Signing
June 28, 2014, 7pm
at The Albuquerque Center for Spiritual Living
2801 Louisiana Blvd. NE, Albuquerque
 
Join Tanya Ward Goodman, author of Leaving Tinkertown, and musician Jason Ward, for an evening of words and music to celebrate the spirit of their father Ross Ward, creator of Tinkertown Museum. Tickets are available for $10.00 at the door or online at brownpapertickets.com. A portion of proceeds from ticket sales along with all other donations will benefit the Alzheimer’s Association.