I attended City Speaks, a storytelling event, last night in Pompano Beach, Florida, which reminds me, back in the days in my homeland Haiti, when my dad used to gather us together, just to tell us stories.
Sometimes, they were folktales of Bouki and Malis, the villain and the smart; and other times it was just about his personal stories, telling us about his day to day dealing with this thing called “life.”
Last night, it was about life stories from folks in the city, telling us their narratives about their life segments, and how they intersect with us, the listeners.
There were tellers, there were listeners. Moods swang from joy to sorrow. It was a real life experience.
I enjoyed it. It was a person to person moment. I discovered myself in the stories I heard, and connected with the speakers.
As Mij Byram, an expert storyteller, who introduced the event, said :
“Storytelling is about the connection. That connection is not magic. It’s real. It is about touching the hearts and imaginations of listeners. It is opening them to adventures, feelings and possibilities.”
“In a story,”Mij added, “we can walk through fear and chase the villain. We can experience sorrow and joy and do it in the safe harbor of a story. A story can change thoughts and ideas. A story can touch your heart, make you laugh or make you cry, it can comfort or challenge. A story can help you see yourself and your world in a new way.”
That’s excatly what happened to me when I left Pompano Beach last night reflecting, thinking, and pondering about what I heard about immigration, illegal immigration, thick accent, police interactions with black people, depression, and anxiety.
It was fascinated. A great delightful moment. I loved it.
Be well,
Roosevelt
NB.: City Speaks is a 50 minute event followed by a time of public interaction and reflection. To know more about their programming click here….
rooseveltjeanfrancois 
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