So much of what has brought us this diversity of experiences in life has gone by the wayside. Many of us shy away from Tradition in hopes of finding something new and more "shiny" that will satisfy our appetites (for the time being). One of the traditions most widely known to all of mankind is that of storytelling. In every culture there is some unique aspect to how they deliver the prose whether it is written, oral, or through performance. This as a part of our collective world history can not be denied. Even in today's time we have storytelling that takes itself on in various capacities including...pretty much anything involving art, whether that be comedy, performing arts (such as dance and the like), music, etc. In all honesty, I don't think there's any aspect of life not touched by this "art of storytelling".
Two instances I can remember in particular involving storytelling that I'd like to highlight involve two experiences, one in highschool and the other was as a child.
While in high school I had an English teacher who did a really great job with a number of things, most notably going through Great Expectations to no end. One day in particular we came into the classroom and figured it be a normal day. All of a sudden he began to perform (what I believe was Rapper's Delight) and we were all caught off guard....it. was. awesome! Much to our delight (no pun intended), we were excited to witness Griot: He Who Speaks the Sweet Word during a "talent show day" of sorts that was always put on at the school. It provided a great opportunity for people to display their talents, including one particular fellow who I believed we referred to as A-Wall, who MUST BE making his impact somewhere in the world of acting.
I digress...A griot was one who told stories preserving history, among other things. In particular, the storytelling done that day on my highschool campus took us through black history at a speed too uncommon for your normal documentary footage. "These words connect the dots..."
The other experience as a child introduced me to a character of the likes I shall never forget, Anansi the Spider. Anansi apparently was a trickster and somehow as a West African god, outsmarted the Sky God who held on to all of the stories. This intrigued me as it piqued my imagination; always the star-gazing, day dreaming, ever creative and wondering type. As I grew older though, less and less stories were told. Even with having a number of elder and wise people around, I didn't hear too much of them.
#myReflection
As I've mentioned, storytelling can help us to address many of the issues we face today. A lot of times it simply takes having a conversation and willfully listening to all parties involved. About a month later I had lunch with a brother who turned out would be a friend for a lifetime after we finished talking (it also helps that he married a good friend of mine). During our talk we dished a little about our individual experiences. At one point he talked about how sometimes in certain communities (especially black ones) there might be a conversation had where a couple of folks may often defer to someone they think or "know" is smarter or more informed about the topic at hand simply b/c they're "dumb".
Let's say myself, James, and Byron are talking about mass marketing ploys to keep minorities in poverty (first thing that came to mind). Now, James and Byron are both smart dudes. They're good people. James decided college wasn't for him and Byron is still trying to figure out what to do with his life after highschool. When we talk about this topic if we come across something they aren't sure of OR don't want to try to make an intelligent statement about for fear of looking stupid, they'll look at me, "What do you think Marcus, since you know ...." and the beat goes on. Maybe another way to think on this is they may say, "Well, I don't really know (while looking down or around), hey Marcus..." They'll use what little they do know and after that prefer to not say anything because they don't want to seem dumb. When one looks back at the history of slavery and how "mental fortitude" was broken in order to keep enslaved people "enslaved", this gives some sense of understanding as to why. What you think determines so much about your life that it isn't funny.
In that scenario the point that I'm hitting on is this idea that as a result of slavery there are many lingering effects, one which includes among others victimization, lack of responsibility (in some cases), and a thought pattern which suggests "this is all I'll ever be". The movie Django Unchained went as far as suggesting that a certain part of one's brain born of African descent is somehow deformed or smaller than that of a white counterpart (i.e. Suggesting a phenomenal difference in intelligence). In addition, in a psychology class back in highschool there were 2 black males (myself and a friend) who were used as an example of this same concept. Of course we knew (as the teacher explained), that it wasn't so, yet he had a bigger head than I and so this go around I was the dummy.
Hopefully that explanation wasn't too confusing. This conversation was well over a year ago.
So, in thinking about storytelling and taking too long to handle unresolved issues of our past I ask:
Just remember, if you take too long, it may never get done. And by the time you realize it. It'll be. too. late.
Two instances I can remember in particular involving storytelling that I'd like to highlight involve two experiences, one in highschool and the other was as a child.
While in high school I had an English teacher who did a really great job with a number of things, most notably going through Great Expectations to no end. One day in particular we came into the classroom and figured it be a normal day. All of a sudden he began to perform (what I believe was Rapper's Delight) and we were all caught off guard....it. was. awesome! Much to our delight (no pun intended), we were excited to witness Griot: He Who Speaks the Sweet Word during a "talent show day" of sorts that was always put on at the school. It provided a great opportunity for people to display their talents, including one particular fellow who I believed we referred to as A-Wall, who MUST BE making his impact somewhere in the world of acting.
I digress...A griot was one who told stories preserving history, among other things. In particular, the storytelling done that day on my highschool campus took us through black history at a speed too uncommon for your normal documentary footage. "These words connect the dots..."
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| Good ole Plot Structure #storyOfMyLife |
The other experience as a child introduced me to a character of the likes I shall never forget, Anansi the Spider. Anansi apparently was a trickster and somehow as a West African god, outsmarted the Sky God who held on to all of the stories. This intrigued me as it piqued my imagination; always the star-gazing, day dreaming, ever creative and wondering type. As I grew older though, less and less stories were told. Even with having a number of elder and wise people around, I didn't hear too much of them.
Joel 1:2-3 (MSG) #verseOfReflection #d-shedRmx
2 Attention, elder statesmen! Listen closely,
everyone, whoever and wherever you are!
Have you ever heard of anything like this?
Has anything like this ever happened before—ever?
3 Make sure you tell your children,
and your children tell their children,
And their children their children.
Don’t let this message die out.
#myReflection
Part 1 (5min)
Part 2 (4min)
As I've mentioned, storytelling can help us to address many of the issues we face today. A lot of times it simply takes having a conversation and willfully listening to all parties involved. About a month later I had lunch with a brother who turned out would be a friend for a lifetime after we finished talking (it also helps that he married a good friend of mine). During our talk we dished a little about our individual experiences. At one point he talked about how sometimes in certain communities (especially black ones) there might be a conversation had where a couple of folks may often defer to someone they think or "know" is smarter or more informed about the topic at hand simply b/c they're "dumb".
Let's say myself, James, and Byron are talking about mass marketing ploys to keep minorities in poverty (first thing that came to mind). Now, James and Byron are both smart dudes. They're good people. James decided college wasn't for him and Byron is still trying to figure out what to do with his life after highschool. When we talk about this topic if we come across something they aren't sure of OR don't want to try to make an intelligent statement about for fear of looking stupid, they'll look at me, "What do you think Marcus, since you know ...." and the beat goes on. Maybe another way to think on this is they may say, "Well, I don't really know (while looking down or around), hey Marcus..." They'll use what little they do know and after that prefer to not say anything because they don't want to seem dumb. When one looks back at the history of slavery and how "mental fortitude" was broken in order to keep enslaved people "enslaved", this gives some sense of understanding as to why. What you think determines so much about your life that it isn't funny.
In that scenario the point that I'm hitting on is this idea that as a result of slavery there are many lingering effects, one which includes among others victimization, lack of responsibility (in some cases), and a thought pattern which suggests "this is all I'll ever be". The movie Django Unchained went as far as suggesting that a certain part of one's brain born of African descent is somehow deformed or smaller than that of a white counterpart (i.e. Suggesting a phenomenal difference in intelligence). In addition, in a psychology class back in highschool there were 2 black males (myself and a friend) who were used as an example of this same concept. Of course we knew (as the teacher explained), that it wasn't so, yet he had a bigger head than I and so this go around I was the dummy.
Hopefully that explanation wasn't too confusing. This conversation was well over a year ago.
So, in thinking about storytelling and taking too long to handle unresolved issues of our past I ask:
- Jacksonville: What took you so long to really begin to address our education disaster #JPEF #Vitti
- USA: What took you so long to put a black man in office #Obama
- (Insert name here): What took you so long?!
Just remember, if you take too long, it may never get done. And by the time you realize it. It'll be. too. late.
Sumthn2Ponder (s2p):
- What stories have I been told?
- Where are the stories we should be telling?
- Is there a story we've forgotten?
Links for Consideration(L4C):
