Celtic Storytelling

I went to Arizona this past weekend. I was hired to tell Celtic stories at the Tucson Celtic Festival. I had such a great time! I’d never been to Arizona before and my host, Margy, treated me so very well.

The festival was such fun. I told stories to a varied audience; all the way from tiny ones to those who had accumulated a life of wisdom. I shared about the importance of the storyteller in the Celtic tradition.

A storyteller would travel from town to town learning the news, gaining new stories, and sharing what was learned along the way. When a storyteller entered a community, they would knock on the door of a family requesting hospitality. It was a great honor to be selected by the storyteller. The family would host the storyteller giving them room and board. In the evenings the family would invite the entire community to come to their home to sit and listen to the storyteller as they would sit by the fire of the family and share stories and news. The storyteller was CNN, Netflix, and phone device all rolled into one. This was the oral tradition, the original social media.

A Halloween Story

Today is Halloween, when October 31 rolls around I sit on a lawn chair in my front yard, a puppet in hand, handing out treats. A couple of years ago I was doing just that when a young woman, a college student, came by with a younger sibling she was overseeing for trick or treating. She looked at me and said, “Oh my gosh! You’re the puppet lady. I am sure you don’t remember me, but I was in your residency when I was in 2nd grade. You’re the reason I decided to become a teacher. Do you remember telling us that you had been a classroom teacher?”

For more than a decade I worked with a local school teaching puppetry and storytelling for their elective program and, yes, they called me the puppet lady. I cannot tell you how many students I worked with in that school, but I know I had a great time with each and every one of them. This moment in my front yard really touched me. You never know when you are going to influence life, touch a heart, encourage a mind, or help someone to make a decision.

Live a great story…it will likely become part of someone else’s story too.

Some Sparks are Good

I opened my dishwasher this morning to put the clean dishes away, but I soon realized that the machine did not drain. The same thing happened a couple of months ago and I had to snake out my kitchen sink because it was plugged. The problem was solved. I thought this might be the situation again so I checked out the sink and that was not it. I tried starting the dishwasher again and realized that it was not working at all.

So I check the fuse box and sure enough the lever was tripped, I flipped it back and started the dishwasher again. It was working so I started the rest of my day, but suddenly I saw sparks and heard pops happening from under my dishwasher. I immediately ran downstairs to flip the fuse box switch off to cut the power but it was already tripped. I flipped it all the way over to make sure it was off. I am now looking for someone who can come and make the necessary repairs, so my dishwasher will safely work again.

Sparks are good, but not all sparks should be allowed to turn into a fire. Those sparks that came from my dishwasher assured me that I needed to cut the path of electricity so a fire did not begin. They were a warning that something was wrong. Then there are sparks that I want to burn in a controlled fire; lighting a candle, wood in my fireplace, a bonfire in the autumn.

Stories begin as sparks. Some ‘story sparks’ need to be shut down immediately, it is not a story that should be told or shared. Others need to be allowed to burn but controlled. When you stand before an audience you need to consider the fire your story will spark. Are you trying to light a small candle or start a bonfire? Is the story appropriate for those who are trusting you by sitting in your audience?

That’s my thought for this week, now I am going to make some phone calls to try to find someone to fix my dishwasher.

Fall Equals Anticipation

It is time for Fall, the leaves are starting to change color and some have made their way to the ground. School is back in session, Christmas decorations are coming into the stores (way too early for that in my opinion), more turkeys are in the grocery stores, Fall apples are waiting in decorated paper bags, apple cider (I love apple cider) is available, and the days are getting shorter. The signs tell me that soon I should be able to pull out my scarves, jackets, and wear my really cool socks; I really do have some great decorated and handmade socks. I also have some amazing handmade moccasins. It makes me happy to wear these clothes!

Fall has always been my favorite season. It feels like there is anticipation in the air. A sort of, “get ready cause it’s coming” kind of feel. I’m not always sure what is coming, but something new is just around the river bend. 2018 has been a year of challenges for my family; because of those challenges, I know 2019 will bring with it some big changes and new directions for us. Yep, anticipation, I will have new stories brewing in October, stewing in November, and sitting on simmer in December so they can be ready for 2019.

What are you anticipating this Fall?

I Saw Big Foot!!

My husband and I went to the first annual Big Foot Festival in Marion, NC. It’s a small town but A LOT of people showed up for this festival, which was great for the economy. Steven and I went because the advertisements made it look like fun and, well, I wanted a big foot tee-shirt. It seems Marion underestimated the number of people they would get at this festival. It was hot, people where shoulder to shoulder, pretty much everyone sold out of big foot tee shirts, and they needed more bathroom access. But, we had a good time. My date (my husband) was great company, we laughed as we walked from vendor to vendor on the closed-off street, we met some very interesting people, and we even saw a couple of Big Foots (or is it Big Feet?). We are actually planning on going back next year. I think there might be a story in there somewhere. 

By the way, I got my big foot tee shirt, I ordered it online!
https://www.romanticasheville.com/bigfoot-festival