Who Knew...The National Storytelling Network!

The following is a quote from the National Storytelling Network's webpage...check out their website!

"Storytelling...

Storytelling, the language art that predates written history, is also a widespread, dynamic, and varied art form in the modern world. Professional and amateur storytellers entertain audiences of all ages. Storytelling is a key tool in fields such as health and healing, business, law, education, religion, and environmental action.

Everyone is familiar with the power and intimacy of one-on-one conversation. Many recognize theater’s magical capacity to open the mind to new horizons. Storytelling, a life skill with enormous communicative powers, combines these qualities. Storytelling transforms lives - and NSN transforms storytellers."

The National Storytelling Network Conference is being held July 29, 2010 through August 1, 2010. Check out the conference information on their website at www.storynet.org. All I can say is that practice makes for a better storyteller. So go tell your stories!

Remembering....

I woke up this morning at 3AM on the sofa, as I tend to have a habit of doing lately, to the television documentary about the designing and building of the 911 Memorial for the victims of the Pentagon attack. Gary Sinise was the narrator telling the story of that day and how the design of this memorial was intended to remember, as individuals, each of the persons who lost their life that day. Individual people, with lives of their own, with mothers/fathers, husbands/wives, people who loved them dearly. I remember that day vividly, where I was, what I was doing...and did, on my way to my own job in Washington, DC. The voluminous cloud of dark, grey smoke that I watched build and grow taller and taller to my right as I crossed Whitehurst Freeway...and to my left, seeing all of the carpenters/builders lined up, standing on the edges of the rooftops of the highrises they were working on--looking at that same cloud from across the river. We didn't know then that this cloud meant that 184 lives had been taken. The 911 remembrance timeline had begun.

In their design, The Pentagon Memorial designers literally included that timeline and those of the Pentagon victims. The youngest of those individuals, Dana Falkenberg, was only 3 years old. That's what really hit me in the heart--a true innocent lost for no good reason. This child will now be remembered, always, with a memorial attesting to the fact that they had once lived and their life taken too cruelly, too soon. So, too, will I remember that the wife of a Department of Energy colleague will have her own memorial there. I've not gone to the World Trade Center site, nor have I been to the Pentagon Memorial, but I now feel compelled to go. To witness. To remember.

It is truly hard for me to believe that almost ten years have passed since the 911 attacks on our country and our people. We have moved on, as the living must do, and we have tried to bring some sense of normalcy to our daily living. We do this even while the lengths to which we go to protect ourselves from another such attack is, at times, onerous, complicated, invasive, and, yes, sometimes ridiculous. Yet, we must never forget, we must always remember--evil doers are intent on doing evil. We have many Memorials remembering other wars fought, other individuals fallen, all this to honor and validate the cost of living Free. The Pentagon Memorial is the newest memorial. On this weekend that usually heralds the beginning of our Summer fun, I hope that you will take a few moments to remember that we enjoy our life of freedom--to go to the seaside, to take in the sun, to enjoy time with our families because someone cared enough to give their life in order that our Nation continue as the Land of the Free!

How Long is Too Long??

Today I learned a "lesson" from my daughter...the world of story-telling needs to consider the new world of social media. Meaning? Stories should be no longer than 140 characters according to Ms. "Just get to the point!" I can relate...sort of...when I remember how many times I've asked my mother to hurry along a story that she has been telling me (most for the third or fourth time). But really--140 characters! First, I have the speaking habit of many folks living below the Mason-Dixon line--I talk slo-o-o-o-w! That is, according to my daughter who I believe was kidnapped by some family in New York/New Jersey and who secretly endoctrinated her with their speech patterns--"Warp Speed, Mr. Sulu!" I also believe in sharing the details, all of the details, that enrich the story for the listener. At least, I assumed that to be the case--again, incorrectly, according to my impatient listener. For story-tellers, one and all, the dilemma is how to capture and keep the attention of your listener without going on too long and losing them.

So I tried a new approach--"Man, woman, hiking, bad fall, rescued!" Her response?
"Got it--now tell me more!".....Sigh.

Outerspace, NASA, Project Management & Storytelling

Imagine my surprise that one of the very special, unique and brilliant people that I have met during my career turns out to be responsible for using storytelling in a very unusual setting--the Federal Government, no less! I met Dr. Edward Hoffman in the early 90's when working on revising the Department of Energy's Project Management curriculum. Storytelling as a method of knowledge management is not only a novel way of capturing and sharing relevant information; it is also budget friendly. Again, it is a way for more experienced leaders within a specific community to assist a new generation, to give them knowledge and information they may need to avoid costly errors, to lead by their actions and their words, to INSPIRE!

Go to http://www.edutechltd.com/pdf/impact_storytelling.pdf to read more about how NASA and Dr. Edward Hoffman and Dr. Alexander Laufer built a knowledge-sharing community among Project Managers within NASA. If you know of more recent applications of storytelling (for a positive purpose)within the Federal Government or your agency, by all means share them with us!

Oral Tradition--Who is Your Family Storyteller

In an article posted by the Cultural Heritage Initiative for Community Outreach (CHICO) based at the University of Michigan School of Information (http://www.si.umich.edu/CHICO/UMS/drummers/index.html), a description of the oral tradition is provided. It says that storytelling is a way in which people make sense of what is going on around them on a day to day basis.

My mother is a perfect example of this. She tells her stories, every day, about the things that have had an impact on her life and on the lives of her family. Not only does she tell them, she repeats them at the mere mention of some word or some action that triggers the tale to be told--again, and, yes, again. Do I mind? On occasion I have to admit that I suck in my breath and prepare myself for yet one more rendition of the time that, for example, my under-age uncle ran away and joined the Army Airforce by forging my grandmother's name for permission. Yet, each time it's told she seems to divulge just a tad more of what happened that day, what my grandmother did, or other bits of information that she seemed to be holding on to in order to share them at just the right time for her audience. When the story begins to shift, my flagging attention is yanked into full alert. That wasn't the way she told this before! Yes, one more time my Mom has captured me in her storytelling spell. Who is your family storyteller?

What does Wikipedia Say?

So what does Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, have to say about "Storytelling?" I've provided the link because you may find the variety of, and individuals involved in, the art of storytelling to be very interesting. From Charles Laughton and Rod Stewart, to the current generation and Catherine McPhee (of American Idol fame)--storytellers all!

A Southern Storyteller with a Fabulous Funnybone!

I just received the monthly edition of my friend Judy Lockhart DiGregorio's column. I look forward to receiving each story from Judy because you never know what to expect--except that you know that your funnybone will definitely be tickled. Check out Judy's website (and her stories) at www.judyjabber.com

Has Storytelling Become a Communications Lost Art?

It occurred to me, recently, that with the advancement of technology and the speed at which communication takes place (think Twitter and other social media) that storytelling as a means of communication has undergone a dramatic change. Without being judgmental--is this a good thing or not--I began to wonder how this might impact daily life. Will storytelling, as an art-form, become a lost art?

Thinking about storytelling, and the impact that losing this form of communication could have on a society, encouraged me to start this blog. Storytelling is part of the visual arts, performance art, child-rearing, business planning and negotiations, and is even an important leadership skill. What do you believe will happen to the art of storytelling over the next decade?