Lisa Brennan-Jobs Memoir: Her conversation with her mentor Esther Wojcicki (Part 1)
Small Fry tells a universal story of family dynamics that any parent or child can relate to. Furthermore, the book looks back at the author’s upbringing in the Bay Area in the transformative 1980s and ’90s — an account that resonated with many locals yesterday in the Media Arts Program that Woj started at Palo Alto High. Lisa Brennan-Jobs, who now lives in Brooklyn, revisited her roots and it was fitting that she shared the story herself. In a way, this was Lisa’s way of also sharing with the world her next chapter as a new mom as well. The event was unusually warm and laid back in spite of a fully packed atrium.
Small Fry is a coming of age story about a girl coming of age in the 80s and 90s in Palo Alto, California. When Lisa arrived in Palo Alto, her excitement to see the teacher who changed her life could not be mistaken and at the exact moment she turned into Woj’s class, Woj was coming out and the love that the two had for each other was palpable. It was like reliving some of the moments that Lisa described in Small Fry.
The Media Arts Center at Palo Alto High School was standing room only and it was clear that the world was interested in hearing first hand this story about a young lady who grew up poor in the suburbs of Palo Alto and the difference one teacher can make. When students interviewed Lisa about what it is she loved about Woj, she said, Woj gave us a lot of freedom and a voice. She made us work on real issues. In fact, it is the only time I ever felt empowered when I was in Woj’s class. This was important for many reasons. The Woj Way philosophy is inherently about student empowerment and community engagement. This moonshot event was no different.
Lisa Brennan-Jobs in a conversation with her mentor and journalism teacher, Esther Wojcicki was outstanding even before it all started. It was clear that trust is present and Woj’s role of being a guide on the side has not changed at all in the past 22 years.
This was a special moment to see that TRICK (or the Woj Way) passed the test of time. Trick stands for Trust, Respect, Independence, Collaboration and Kindness. See Woj’s most recent book on how to raise successful people for a more robust experience of this phenomena.
Lisa and Woj have a special relationship and they began to talk about the awesome video of Lisa’s five month old son. Lisa shares special moments with Woj and vice versa. In Small Fry, Lisa read an except which stated that when she saw that Palo Alto High School had journalism, specifically, the Campanile, her heart was drawn to that and this inspired her love for writing. It is a special tribute to the place that inspired so much to have Lisa back in Palo Alto.
It was heartwarming seeing Lisa write a note to her mentor in her memoir, Small Fry. This is the only book were Lisa tells her story in her voice and it is a special moment. “Today is about Lisa and her voice,” Woj tells the packed atrium in the Palo Alto High Media Center. The energy in the space was vibrant and Lisa was soulful and felt home.
Her parents were young, only 23 when she was born and her father was not ready to be a dad yet. It was the lack of money and resources that created a stronger relationship with her mother.
Before her father died, Lisa visited him on his death bed. Her father was apologetic and sorry being absent and all weekend he would say “I owe you one.” Lisa did not know what that meant. However, she told him that if she were to do it again perhaps “we could be friends.” She liked her father and her father liked her.
