Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir

Five years after Gwen’s death, Natasha found a cassette recording on which Gwen spoke. Natasha had already forgotten what her mother smelled like and how she walked. She had found the tape in her grandmother’s house. The tape brought Gwen back to her. Then, the tape became tangled in the machine. Natasha took out the cassette, smoothed the tape, and started over. Again and again, it would catch. Finally, it snapped in her hands. 

Since his release from prison, Joel had been calling Gwen repeatedly and threatening her. As a result, Gwen worked with the DeKalb County District Attorney’s office to get enough evidence to “compel a judge to issue a warrant for Joel’s arrest” (158). The assistant district attorney installed a recording device in Gwen’s apartment (her word against Joel was not enough) that was connected to her telephone. During one of her conversations with Joel, there is an interruption from when Natasha called to tell her mother when exams would be over, and she could pick her up for summer break. That call occurred on June 4, 1985; the last time Natasha spoke with her mother.

The tape starts on June 3.