David Roth

These are my grandmother and her husband on her birthday earlier this year. Sid is Ettie’s second husband. Her first husband, David (whose name I inherited), died before I was able to meet him. He seems to occupy a kind of invisible role in our family history. At her birthday, home videos of her first marriage were shown. This image feels like an accompaniment to the two of them watching that film. There is plenty of love between them, but I felt like the memory of David entered the room and lingered over the course of the night. This photo is the closest I’ve gotten to understanding that part of their marriage.