It is either a small world or the connections I have made of late are meant to be. I have a new friend named Susan who was one of my MSW teachers. She is a woman of wisdom, and has developed herself into one of those people who I admire-she teaches, she leads retreats, she is thoughtful, she holds workshops, she instructs yoga, she pushes the envelope beyond her own comfort. She is an excellent communicator, always seeking clarification if need be or allowing a quiet silence if there isn't anything to say. She lost her husband about 2 years ago, and had to put her dog down this past year, so we have a few things in common.
Susan introduced me to this amazing experience called The Narrators. It is a live storytelling show one Wednesday a month at a local theater. The first best part about it is that it is free. The second best part are the stories that people tell. People from all walks of life tell stories about their lives based on a topic. Stories are poignant, funny, bring tears, come from nervous new speakers or ones comfortable in front of a microphone. It is a unique opportunity to be in a room with so much humanity and heart.
She also introduced me to another amazing experience and that is The Moth StorySlam. It happens one Friday a month, where people put their names in a bag and if chosen get up on the stage at Swallow Hill and tell a 5 minute story on the topic of the night. The story is judged and given points, the winner of each night competing against each other at the GrandSlam at the end of the year. This month's topic was Blunders and I have not laughed as hard as I did that night in a very long time.
What appears cyclical about this is it reminds me of when I completed the Toastmaster's Competent Communicator program. And actually, one of my previous Toastmaster colleagues was there at The Moth and spoke about her trip to India and losing her camera. Toastmasters got me not only comfortable to speak in public, but got me writing, actually. Before each meeting when I would give my speech I had to craft something creative, funny, compelling...anything that would move the audience to an emotion. I wrote some of my greatest pieces during Toastmasters, and they unfortunately died when my computer died (Mom, I know...I should always back everything up on a disk...). Sitting at The Moth, hearing these stories, and feeling connected through words has re-inspired me to begin writing again. The February topic is "Love Hurts" which could be funny or very sad. And honestly, the thought of standing up on a stage in front of a lot of people (these usually sell out to standing room only) is very, very scary. But who knows? Maybe meeting Susan, and getting introduced again to the art of the written and spoken word, is a cycle worth keeping going.
No comments:
Post a Comment