What makes a Personal Story worth telling? This is question I have heard asked in our Personal Storytelling class on Thursdays, taught by Liz Warren, more than one time and from more than one person. As a class we ponder the question with answers that sound something like, “If you feel a connection to the story, and can deliver a great story, ultimately as a storyteller you will know.”
Well, I strive to be a storyteller and I don’t know. I have so many stories that people enjoy listening to while at family functions and growing up stories that friends listen to, but will they hold an audience? I received an answer to this question recently, and the answer was yes. The reason these personal stories are interesting is because they are relatable. Many of us have family members who made a difference in our lives, or the cousin we didn’t like or the best friend that led us to the bad life of teenage rebellion. Personal stories help us to reflect on ourselves internally and help us relate externally by sharing our experience and maybe our experience will help someone in some way.
Storytelling is community and community is life. Personal stories are about life. We all have a limited number of years here on this earth to enjoy laughter, love, and life. Not many of us have the opportunity to do all that is offered by our earth. Through the sharing of personal stories I have gone places I would never have imagined, fell in love over and over, and shared the brilliance of a child’s smile I will never forget.
Thank you to all storytellers who share their adventures, and thank you to all who listen to my personal adventures.
The picture at the top of the post shows Rosanna telling to students at Big Park Elementary School as part of this year's Celtic Harvest Festival Sedona as Dixie Walljasper, Chrissy Dart, and Seferino Ruiz listen.
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