family stories
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The Perils of Not Hearing Stories by Victoria Kelly
I am from a rather large family. I am the oldest of six, my mom is the oldest of eleven, and my paternal grandmother was one of seventeen. You would think that I would have grown up with hundreds or thousands of stories, yet I heard none. When I would ask questions, I never got…
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Spooky Brews by Cassie Cushing
Last Friday, October 26, marked the end of my Spooky Brews – a series of events that I did through the month of October in which I collaborated with 4 local coffee shops to do evenings of coffee and stories. As a local coffee roaster, I brought in my freshly roasted coffee just for these special…
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Fishing for Stories by Louise Laux
In The Power of Personal Storytelling Jack Maguire discusses “The Quest for the Past.” He offers suggestions for unlocking memories, and ways to “step back” and examine those memories from different points of view. I like some of his wording, such as “mazy meanderings,” “feeling and thinking backward,” and “loafing and inviting your soul.” I’m trying all…
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Six Words by Brad Auten
Ernest Hemmingway was once challenged in a bar bet to write a story in six words. He worked on the story for some while and finally came up with: “For sale: Baby shoes, Never worn” A couple years later he decided to call this six word short-story one of the best stories he had written. The…
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“Come in! and know me better, man!” by James Ashcroft
"Come in!" exclaimed the Ghost. "Come in! and know me better, man!" Scrooge entered timidly, and hung his head before this Spirit. He was not the dogged Scrooge he had been; and though the Spirit's eyes were clear and kind, he did not like to meet them. "I am the Ghost of Christmas Present," said…
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Bring Me Home a Souvenir by Phyllis Ralley
Metropolis Magazine this month tells us of Ilse Crawford’s designs for interiors that “entrance all the senses.” To this end the London-based designer has created a guesthouse in Stockholm, which invites guests to enjoy the dining area and cooking area as if they were at home. Guests can go there any time, day or night, with…
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Storytelling Revealed by Sylvia Torrey
Since early childhood I can remember the telling of personal and family stories as we sat together at dinner, or afterwards on the front porch watching the sunset on a warm summer night. In our family my father was the greatest storyteller, primarily because he shared so much family history with us. These years of listening and…
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Personal Storytelling Through Poetry by Nancy Newlin
How do poems grow? They grow out of your life.-Robert Penn Warren I became a writer in New Hampshire. I’m not talking about being a professional writer, but I began to think of myself as a writer after participating in a series of summer literacy institutes at the University of New Hampshire. In fact,…
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Environments for Storytelling by Marianne Auten
“If you wanted to create an education environment that was directly opposed to what the brain was good at doing, you probably would design something like a classroom. If you wanted to create a business environment that was directly opposed to what the brain is good at doing, you probably would design something like a…
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The Importance of Listening by Sally Borg
I love listening to and telling personal stories and am excited to be taking “Creating and Telling Personal Stories.” I think I am more fired up about hearing the stories from my classmates than I am about telling my own stories. There is so much benefit from hearing all the stories. Listening to how their…
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Snowflakes by Kelly Davis
“No two snowflakes are exactly alike.” We have all heard that saying. Well, it’s true. The shape of a snowflake is determined by the temperature and humidity of the environment in which it is formed. The composite shape of the snowflake is created as it travels through varying ranges of temperature and humidity while falling…
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Enter the Witch by Diana Lucente
We all know the beloved story of Hansel and Gretel. But do we ever consider that there might be other perspectives to the story? One fascinating perspective which has been played out in many contemporary versions of the Hansel and Gretel story is that of the Wicked Witch. Many of us blindly accept the stereotype that she is the…