Scottish philosopher John Macmurray said, “There can be no man until there are at least two men in communication.” This implies that the essence of personhood resides in our relationship and communication with others. Likewise, stories are meant to be shared. They cannot exist without a relationship. They are meant to be told and heard, given and received. In the telling of stories, we not only pass on vital information but build and maintain relationships that span beyond the life and time of those who first told them.
For instance, think of the fairy tales and fables we continue to pass on to generation after generation of children. They carry with them the values, experiences, and traditions of the particular cultures in which they were first created.
There are lessons to be learned, dangers to be avoided, and obstacles to overcome. Fairy tales’ over-arching themes provide us with lessons about decision making, virtues, life and love, good and evil which prove still resonant and valuable to us who are far outside the original context they were first created in. What is more, these fables provide valuable insight into a shared past, a culture and people who no longer live anywhere but in the tales we continue to tell about them.
A story is first told then retold. In this manner a multi-level dialogue is established. Like a pebble in a pond with an infinite number of ripples circling out from the origin, our stories connect us to each other in the past, present and future. Even if a person is reading a book alone, they are still in relationship with the author and characters of the story.
Moreover, stories take us on a journey. We get to vicariously travel to places and times far from us, worlds different from our own, undertake adventures, trials, and triumphs and hopefully, come to a better understanding of ourselves, others, and the world.
Whether it is spoken word, book, staged play, television show, or film, stories provide us with infinite ways of learning and connecting. Stories take us outside ourselves in a way that broadens our understanding. Stories tell us we are not alone. Someone else in another time, place, or context understands our thoughts, feelings, desires, or experiences and has some wisdom or insight to share with us. When I tell my stories, I can share what I have learned with others.
In my awesome role as a Kindermusik educator, I strongly encourage my parents to read to their children on a regular basis, and I incorporate story-telling frequently in the lessons I teach. Added to the benefits of language and literacy skills that come from reading with children, they learn to use the language they hear to express themselves and the story of their own life.
Stories spark the imagination and help us to understand ourselves in the context of what has been, what is, and spurs us to wonder what could be. So keep telling, watching, reading, and creating them. Stories are the threads which make up the fabric of life.
-posted by Miss Meresa, who loves a good story, and as a child had an awfully hard time limiting nightly story time to just one or two books.
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