The Family Storyteller

Who doesn’t like to hear a good story? Stories connect us to our past, explain our sorrows, and share our joys. Stories may take us soaring on the wings of imagination while others are true stories that help us understand life or give us a strong anchor to our past and who we are today.
A good story can provide the best entertainment! When I was a girl, my daddy was the best story teller in our family. He was a world War II Veteran, serving on the European fronts of terrible war scenes such as Normandy. But he survived the war without an injury, we thought. He created for us a funny guy named Huffaker . Daddy would tell the stories of this funny guy who turned military life into a continuous circus of fun and games; Daddy would laugh and we would laugh. When things seemed dull at our house we’d say: “Tell us about Huffaker, Daddy!”
Now that Daddy is 90, he tells the other side of his war stories; they’re not funny and a tear often trickles down his cheek when he tells them. Now we can see the other side of the war – a horrible nightmare where thousands of men were killed every day. His stories help us understand that, in addition to the Huffakers who made the war bearable, the heart of many Americans were gravely injured for a cause greater than themselves.
Some of us think we’re mass telling our stories now on Face book, Twitter, My Space and other social networks. But this is not good story telling; the short little quips cannot create the colorful or poignant pictures on the stages of our minds to be placed in our permanent story library like my Daddy’s stories. How can these succinct little descriptions or comments compare to hearing the incredulous disbelief of a mystery, the hushed sounds of amazement, the excitement in a joyous exclamation or the voice choking with regret or breaking in sorrow? How can they compare to observing the worried wrinkle or a shadow of concern falling across the brow, the flushing of crimsoned cheeks, the tilt of the chin in thoughtful remembrance, the sparkle in the eye, the playful wink , the delight in a smile? Don't get confused and think you’re telling your story on the social networks of today – be sure you REALLY share it with someone, somewhere, sometime.

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