In my previous blog, I talked about telling a story based on your personal experience. As you tell your story, you might have found yourself exaggerating a bit.
Consider the word story. The common interpretation of the word "story" is a fabrication, a lie, as when a parent tells her child, "Tell me what happened; don't tell me a story now!"
Do not be confused between what is real or factual and what is true. Embedded in every heartfelt story is your truth. The angler who describes the size of a fish communicates the feeling and impression he had when making the catch. (“It was THIS BIG!”) Was the fish as big as he says? Maybe not. Nevertheless, his description of its size is a shorthand summary of his experience catching the fish.
Consider the story you told. Look behind the facts and dig deeper into the meaning of the story for your listeners. What did you want your story to say? What was the truth of your story? Did you exaggerate at any point? Were you dishonest when you did? No, unless you purposefully wanted to deceive for a personal benefit. Straight facts are often not enough to convey the truth of your story.
This is significant when you are an audience for another person's story. What is the truth embedded in their story, what is behind the curtain? In the Disney animated film Pocahontas, Alan Menken & Stephen Schwartz introduced the song “Listen with your heart.” Only then, the lyrics reveal, can you understand. We hear the ideas behind their words. Every heartfelt story has more in-depth meaning. We listen from the “inside out” to gain insight into the storyteller's experience. This is called empathic listening.
Empathic listening is especially important when listening to children's stories. We will examine this in more detail in a future blog.
As a storyteller, you are inviting your listeners to be moved by the meaning embedded in your story. Your story is an invitation to listen with their hearts. This is true whether you are sharing a personal story or a fairy tale. I will examine this challenge in fairy tales in a future blog.
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