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 !

When do you collect stories : Back to School 4

Computer systems, the name still elicits excitement. An analyst at York tells this story in January 1987 "Yorklore". He was flying about 25 thousand feet over the Great Lakes on his way back from a business trip. His fellow passenger was reading a copy of the National Enquirer and as much as he scoffed at this [source] he started reading it over his seat mate's shoulder.

This is what caught his eye, “York University, Youngest undergraduate”. He found himself reading on. After all only this news print would make up a story about an 11 year old undergraduate. It wasn’t until he returned to his job at York that he discovered the horrible truth. There was a new student enrolled, Jason Levy was his name, making the Enquirer correct.

The moral of this story, never judge an article while on board an aircraft flying 25 thousand feet!

The computer analyst loves this story and the telling of it.

All you need is an interested party.

When to collect stories : School Days 3

"YORKLORE", the name sounds elusive and yet those tellers who contributed some of their memories shared these stories with a special feeling for York University. It was collected over 19 years ago and these stories still bring me
closer to that special place and time.

Storytellers come every shape and size, they are young, less young and some are quite mature. All have one thing in common, they have a story to tell that makes them feel alive. Such a person deserves to be heard, let's call him Bob,

Professor Bob tells of the unexpected confrontation with two teaching assistants.

Working as a team they requested time off giving very little notice to the Department. Somewhat dismayed with the lack of professionalism
on the part of these TAs, Bob felt he had no choice but to give them the time requested. This was after all a humanistic environment and although they had not given any reason for the urgency, the time was granted. It was several days later then Professor Bob received a telephone call informing him that his team had just had a baby.

Asked if he had not noticed anything, Bob smiled and walked away still amused by the incident with York's humanistic center intact.

Listen, record and remember. The telling comes naturally. Each time a story is shared it receives its just moment in time, validating and enriching our present.

When to collect stories : School Days

If ever there was time to collect stories and record shared memories, back to school is just such a time! No matter our age, no matter where we were, the feeling that something was going to happen haunts us still.

In the fall of 1986 I was studying at York University. In a first brush with the study of folklore I had the opportunity to collect "Yorklore". This was the title I gave to my collection of stories shared by faculty, staff and students about something they had experienced while at York. They were short or longer, they ranged between beliefs stories and anecdotes, humorous or mysterious. I still feel privileged by the tellers generosity in sharing these with me. Here is one such story;

"It was a the winter of 1985.
Three of us were support staff and we spotted
a body outside lying on the snow.
Watching for a few moments
and observing the body was motionless
security was called in to investigate.
Having taken CPR training the staff
still felt ill equipped to deal with an emergency.
Upon arriving the Security guards
quickly assessed the situation while the staff looked
on "safely" from the window.
All were relieved when it was obvious our victim,
whom the staff thought
might be dead, was only drunk.

===========================

Their imagination had wandered
from assault to suicide.
Being dead drunk hadn't entered
the repertoire of victim.
Strictly a sober set !

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What do Realtors say about selling? Location, Location, Location! Collecting stories can take place anywhere; an intimate corner at a Christmas gathering, on the porch while taking in the breeze, during a pancake breakfast with colleagues, an anniversary celebration. The place and time is determined by You and the Teller. You choose when and just record. Take it down in notes, a tape recorder, whatever fashion works best for you. Respect the act of sharing and stay true to the story.

It could be your returning to University or College, or perhaps your child's first day, record the moment, and share the telling,