Though it was a bit obscured by the lead up to and execution of Future Festival 2014, we did gather on July 11 for another evening in our Summer Storytelling Series.
As we at the Huss Project continue to seek new media and methods by which to share and listen to each other’s stories, we recognize there are some time-tested formulas that we continually return to. For the July Storytelling Night we gathered to celebrate one of our favorite storytelling mediums — books — by joining around good food and sharing tales of how the written word has shaped our lives.
The books discussed came from various points on the literary spectrum: fiction, non-fiction, children’s stories, collections, poetry, epics. The stories told touched on a range of emotions as well. Like an hour-and-a-half long roller coaster, we found ourselves careening up and down, at one moment bent over laughing, the next stunned in silence. Like most roller coasters, we returned to the place we started; however, we found ourselves transformed, both by sharing a piece of ourselves and opening ourselves up to being changed by the words of others. The final word of the night — as is the goal for all our storytelling events — was gratitude and joy found when we recognize the shared humanity between us. As we tell our different experiences of how books have confronted and comforted us, we acknowledge, as U2 did, that “we’re one, but we’re not the same.”
Our Summer Storytelling Series continues on August 8 (Local Haunts) and again on September 12 (Food). Our regular potluck begins at 7:00 — please bring a dish to share, but you are welcome whether or not you do — and stories begin at 8:00. We hope to see you there!