Sunday, October 26, 2008

A time for collecting stories : Festivals & Celebrations



Samhain, All Hallow's Eve, Halloween, even the names sound ancient. Traditions stem from stories shared, feats reported through tales and legends, extraordinary records stored in time. The oral tradition is ripe at this time of year. Families prepare to Trick or Treat their neighbours children. What has become a candy feast was once a time to gather legumes, slaughter the beasts so that food would be aplenty over the winter months. Giving thanks was the central theme.

Festivals and Celebrations bring us together, whether in belief or tradition community gathers to mark these special dates in the calendar. Halloween evokes memories of our youth, some among us remember the glee of anticipation for going door to door. We would rehearse tricks in case we were called upon to perform. A song, a skit even a short play,all these and more live in us today. Halloween, with the leaves turning, the cold seeping in the windows and doors and the rains transport us back to that time when we were the performers.

Tell these stories to those close to you. All unique, all your own, only you know how you experienced that period in the way you did. Begin remembering the sounds of the laughter, the colour of the street lighting, the sound the apples made when they dropped into your bag of treats.

Be the teller,



Sunday, October 19, 2008

Our lives our stories



"Our lives are stories,... and the stories we have to give each other are the most important. None of us have a story too small and all are of equal stature. We each tell them in different ways, through different mediums-and if we care about each other, we'll take the time to listen." Foreword by Terri Windling to Waifs and Strays by Charles de Lint.

Everyday of our lives are filled with happenings, great and sorrowful, small and gentle, ephemeral and minute. But these our all parts of our story. Yours and mine. While searching for a teller to share with you today I was reminded of one such person, a writer, dwelling in Ottawa. Charles de Lint unfolds spaces within spaces to create that which cannot be seen, cannot be touched unless you venture forth.

Be the teller of your story,


Monday, October 13, 2008

Finding stories : Visit, talk and discover



Colours bursting everyhwhere and no place is more popular for stories than your library. October is Canadian Library Month and it is a one stopshopping for activities, sites of interest and opportunities for all.

Discover the wealth of resources at your finger tips at your library. And don't forget to listen for the stories. You could begin collecting sooner than you think.

Visit the official site and discover the stories !

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Fall brings on many changes : Stories abound


The leaves are changing colours all around us. The Appalachins stand majestic amidst this time honoured change. And what of stories amid this throng. Is it the orange and yellow in the leaves, the copper shades in the forests. One story shouts out all the others this year.

Elections are a time of change, change in conciousness, change in attitude, change in expectation. Election is a time when these stories are shared. You are hearing some of the most often told stories in families and groups of all kinds. Who should lead, who should follow, who has the strength to carry out the task on the hard road ahead. Change demands of us all a commitment to something, someone, at sometime. You are the change that needs to happen.

The best stories are those shared for the best reasons. Love, understanding, generosity, inclusivness, inclusion and these never leave anyone behind.

Vote, vote for who you think tells the strongest story, but vote!!! Be the teller!