| |
Five Miracles of Storytelling
...by True Thomas
The First Miracle:
There is something special about a storyteller.
Granted, any one can tell a story, but there are people
who are born to find, keep, create, and tell stories. They come from all
walks of life, and come to their gifts through a variety of ways. They
are the little kids who put a big blob of black paint on the paper and
tell their kindergarten teacher "....it's a cave....full of bat's!" They
might be truck drivers, or presidents. Storyteller's are the canaries in
the coal mine of the human experience, sensitive, perceptive, and
crucial. We are unique, crazy, needed, and that's a miracle.
The Second Miracle:
Stories come to us.
On the side of cereal boxes, in car pool lanes, from old
books, and little kids. Stories will come to us from ancient days and
the grout in the shower. They grab us by the ears, and crawl into our
hearts and heads and demand to be told. Maybe not today, maybe not
tomorrow, but tell them you will. If you put a stethoscope to a
storytellers head, you will hear the whispers...."tell me", "no, tell
me!". We find stories in so many places, and they become a part of us,
and sometimes go out, and come back to us in new and incredible ways.
And that's a miracle.
The Third Miracle:
You never know how a story will affect the universe.
That person sleeping in the back of the audience, the
little kids who just won't settle down, will come up after the story and
tell you that it meant something to them. Years can go by, and someone
will tell you- my daughter, my grandfather, loved that story you told,
and it changed them. Made them sing the silly refrain, look for monsters
under the bed, or rediscover parts of their heritage. Stories go out and
change the world, and you with them. And that's a miracle.
The Fourth Miracle:
Stories have a life and power of their own.
They are continually changing, shifting, moving. Stories
can build a nation, or destroy a people. When stories die, untold,
unrecorded, a little of what we are as the human race dies with them. To
attempt hold a story, to own a story is to deny the power of the gift we
are given. Cinderella was born around the world, Jack has seven league
boots to cross any boundary. The right story in the right time and place
can change the world, and the world can and will take that story, change
that story, and hand it right back. Believe in the power and life of
stories. And that's a miracle.
The Fifth Miracle:
The universe conspires to have stories told. "a.k.a. Storyteller
Synchronicity."
Your car will break down on the way to a garlic
festival, and a garlic farmer will give you a ride to the event, just
full of interesting stories. You'll mention a cat in a story, and one
will walk behind you on that stage, just as you mention one. You'll tell
a story with the wind coming roaring up, and nature complies. I've seen
it, you've seen it. It raises the hairs on the back of your neck. You'll
be desperate for a story, and a friend will hand you just the right
book, that they found at a library sale, on the off chance you might not
have it. People on planes, in the doctors office, are there to hear and
more importantly give you stories. Little children and garage sales,
bring you stories. People out of the blue contact you and ask.....can
you tell stories about _________? And miracle of miracles, you can. The
universe conspires to help you find and carry these stories to their
next destination. Believe, and you'll see some amazing things. Ask any
storyteller, and they'll tell you their 5th Miracle story.
And that's a miracle.
Believe in the Power of Stories...
greatness of the Celts, of which
ethnic grouping I consider myself a part, considering my beloved Mother
and my father's beloved Mother...the following information was recently
received from our good friend, Susan Abernathy, and as you can see, I am
not the only one who recognizes the greatness of the Celts and the
ancient roots from which they sprang. 'Tis proud I am to number myself
amongst them.
|
|
