Once there was, once there was not...... long, long ago....... once upon a time....... in the time when animals were people.......these phrases open the door to lands both strange and familiar.They invite us to suspend disbelief and to hear the story not with our heads, but with our hearts. It is James Stephens in The Crock Of Gold who conveys it most clearly: "...the head does not hear anything until the heart has listened, and what the heart knows today the head will understand tomorrow." What better way to experience life than by listening with our hearts first, our heads second?
Storytelling and story-listening are excellent ways to develop this special, profound relationship with our daily experiences. Thomas Moore, in Care Of The Soul, considers it this way. He encourages us to develop 'mythological thinking.' This leads us away from looking for literal causes and to develop, rather, more insightful imagining. He points out that our 'stories' are not literal truths, but our interpretations of the events in our lives. By becoming an experienced traveler in the realm of myth and story we can learn to more easily recognize the themes and dynamics of our own lives.
One of the best ways to become an experienced traveler in this realm is by first becoming an experienced story listener. Spend a fair amount of time listening to seasoned tellers, read the classic folktales which have been distilled throughout time and explore the folklore of the many cultures of the world. 'Reading isn't listening,' you may say.
It is when you listen with your heart first.
Listen for that resonant chord within you. You will feel it.
Read the story aloud and give yourself permission to express the emotional journey the story takes you through. Your listeners will be most engaged in the story when they are emotionally connected to your telling of it. You will enjoy storytelling more when it is a multidimensional dance of imagery, senses and feelings. And when experiencing the first time jitters remember, in order to do something well we must first be willing to do it badly. Storytelling is best when it isn't perfect, so long as it is heartfelt.There are many reasons to bring storytelling into your and your family members' lives.
Storytelling offers an opportunity to challenge world views, raise questions regarding personal bias and stimulate the search for creative responses to everyday living. It is a place to practice emotional responses and to develop a sense of oneself. And perhaps most poignantly, it is a place where parents and children can experience joy and laughter together.
Síocháin.
image credits, in order of appearance: antonvandenberg.wordpress.com; julia nowak
