The Photograph

Billy, why are we doing this?

Oh, it's just a couple of questions for posterity's sake.

And you know how much work I got to do.

-Just play along, Christina. -(SIGHS)

-Well... -Fine. Go ahead.

Now, are you glad you came to New York?

Yes.

Do you miss Louisiana?

-Parts of it. -Hmm.

-What parts? -The good parts.

And what do you like about New York?

I like my work.

I like being a mother.

What are you thinking?

That I wish I was as good at love as I am at working.

I wish I didn't leave people behind so often.

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ah, ah

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ah, ah

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ah, ah

Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, ah, ah

Darling, I have to be moved from afar

The truth is the only thing

Worth holding on to anymore

-Anymore -Untie me

Let me loose from the cord

I'm so gone, so far

-(CAMERA BEEPS, CLICKS) -I deserve more

-More, I deserve more -Yeah

-(CAMERA BEEPS, CLICKS) -I'm begging you

-I beg -I'm begging you

-(SHIP HORN DRONES) -Please come home

No one even begs anymore

-I'm begging you -I beg

I'm begging you, please come home...

-Hello? Hey.

-Uh, Isaac? -You the reporter?

Yeah, Michael Block from The Republic.

-Come straight back to the kitchen. -All right.

Hey. Thank you, again.

Yeah, sit down.

-All right. -Mmm-hmm.

This will likely be the best boiled crab you ever eaten.

Oh, no, I'm all right. I ate on the plane.

I just offered you crab. That's not the correct response.

Hey, um, do you mind if I record?

Your story's about BP?

Pointe à la Hache.

Uh, Katrina, the oil spill, how it kind of affected things there.

So, did you always fish?

Well, I'm third generation, but I was in the military.

Before that, I was working on an oil refinery for Gulf Oil.

What was it like working for Gulf Oil?

-They fired me. -Why?

I refused to pump dirty water into the river.

It took us generations to go from sharecropping to independent.

They destroyed us with the oil spill.

This was my wife.

Whoa.

You married?

Uh, I... just got out of something.

She, um... She called while I was flying, man.

She... She told me, "Don't even bother stopping by."

-Well... -(CHUCKLES SOFTLY)

She probably doesn't mean that.

Ah, she's probably right.

Who's this?

Christina Eames.

She took these other photos.

That was me in '84.

She's great. -Yeah.

-She from here? -Yeah.

She moved to New York. She's a photographer.

Hmm. That was... Does she have more like this?

Um, I'm sure she does.

We lost contact, uh, after she took off, or...

I let her leave.

Thirty years later, still trying to figure that out.

Why don't you just look her up?

Too much time done passed.

-Hmm. -I don't recommend getting older.

Less people to talk to, more time to go over every regret.

My Mae, There are two letters.

Please read yours first before sharing the second with your father.

Love, Mom.

My Mae,

Cancer is a creature lurching through my body.

I waited far too long to face it squarely.

I need to write my way out of the mess I've made.

I hope you won't judge me too harshly.

Sometimes the heart can be so full of love,

it's like a weight on your chest making it impossible to move.

That's how I felt when I was with him.

I don't want to write this down

I want to tell you how I feel right now

I don't want to take no time to write this down

I want to tell you how I feel right now

Hey...

What's up? Get those photos I sent you?

-Yeah, I got 'em. -All right.

For you or me, life is not promised

Tomorrow may never appear

You better hold this very moment

-Very close to you -Right now

Very close to you, so close to you...

-Oh. How was Louisiana? -Good.

And how is the girl?

-Huh. It didn't work out. -Don't... No.

Shine your light for the world to see...

Oh, coffee for me. Look at you sucking up.

Hey, have you ever noticed how ugly this place actually is?

Mmm-mmm.

It's bleak and confining and it's claustrophobic.

It don't look that bad to me.

Actually, it's fine, it's a really nice building,

but look, they won't give me anything to write.

Yeah.

Why don't you do me a favor

and, uh, look up this photographer named Christina Eames.

-Cool? -Oh, all right.

-Yeah. -Yeah.

Mae?

-Yeah. -Hey.

Michael Block from The Republic.

Hey.

Uh, after you called,

I pulled all my mother's photos from Pointe à la Hache.

Oh, thanks.

Yeah, since she died, I've been going through all her things.

We weren't expecting it. She didn't tell anyone she was sick.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I saw some of Christina's work in New Orleans.

Um, the guy I was profiling showed me a picture of her.

-She hated when people took photos of her. -Oh.

He said the relationship ended after she left Louisiana.

Well, she wasn't good at staying anywhere.

-Or with anyone. Just ask my father. -Mmm.

Um, maybe we shouldn't be good at staying places.

That sounds very mobile.

Well, maybe.

So I take it you're not walking down any aisles anytime soon?

Nope. Uh, what about you?

Me? I broke up with my last boyfriend after he proposed.

You got commitment issues?

-(LAUGHING) Wow. -(LAUGHS)

Tact.

You from the City?

-Yeah. -Oh, okay.

And how long have you been at Queens Museum?

I've been assistant curator for two years.

What about you? How long have you been at The Republic?

Uh, too long, probably. Like, four years.

Oh, wait a minute. This is, uh, Isaac.

You know him?

I don't know. I...

I went to Louisiana once as a child, but...

Yeah.

You know, uh...

Uh, maybe we should talk more.

You know, I mean... maybe you could talk,

tell me more about Christina and, uh, Pointe à la Hache.

Uh, I could call you.

On your one day off, why would you choose to come back here?

This was supposed to be a date.

We should go to New Orleans this weekend.

-Why? -(SCOFFS)

You question anything that's fun.

What's so fun about New Orleans?

The people are different. And we could dance.

Until I had them memorized...

We could dance right here.

If you don't want to go, I'll just go with Denise and Peter.

You can stay here with Ashley Prentiss.

Why are you bringing up Ashley?

Because she is always hanging around the harbor for no reason,

trying to get your attention.

-That's not true. -(SCOFFS)

I'm sure she'd be happy to stay home.

How much I do

Do love you...

When do you want to go to New Orleans?

-(DOOR SLAMS LOUDLY) Christina.

-Why are you slamming my door? -Sorry. I... I didn't mean to.

-You look pretty. -Thank you.

You should wear more dresses.

Where'd you go?

To the harbor, with Isaac.

Isn't that exciting?

I told him he needs to do better.

He's just like his father.

What's wrong with his father?

He ain't got nothing.

Ain't never gonna have nothing. How many times I got to tell you that?

We're just friends.

"Just friends."