Why Storytelling (Part 1 of 2)

Found this wonderful video on why teach and share storytelling. Please share it with parents and teachers you  know. We storytellers understand the magic that can be created when we tell a story. When teachers and parents understand that value they will seek out the storytellers as well.

Once Upon a Time...Sharing the Fire

Once upon a time that was really 2011, storytellers converged at the Lanes Sharing the Fire Conference. They were so excited to share a weekend of learning, swapping, meals, stories,  music, dancing and more....

The committee from Lanes stayed up way past their bedtime working to make everything just right! Hotel Security stayed up really late trying to figure out how storytellers were having so much fun! ( Like howling at a full moon close to midnight and watching "Willey Phinedit" skeedaddle like his inner 10 year old when he saw security coming)

Some moments were captured and and will be savored in another 30 years, some moments are sweet memories a few were side splitting funny, some tearful, many full of Healing!

Some found ancient treasures. This one dating back  to 1915, but it's tales are much older.  I gave the token bid of $1.00 at the Silent Auction ( now one would think people who talk as much as storytellers wouldn't want anything "Silent" !) to see this treasure came home to CT. You see  the magic in this volume is it was printed in Boston by the R.Stearns Publishing Co. ,( just has to be family,  they got off the boat there in 1630.)



Sharing the Fire 2011
It's a doggone shame if you missed it!

Now if you are feeling all sad and dejected because it is over or you didn't come, DON'T!

The good story fairies can save you!
Just  follow these  magical, easy, directions.....

Get out all your calendars........







First circle or highlight or sprinkle fairy dust over April 29, 30 and May 1, 2011 for the CT. Storytelling Festival in
 New London, CT.  http://www.connstorycenter.org/
Word is there will be magic in the venue for anywhere storytellers gather magic is made!

Then sprinkle some of that fairy dust over the dates March 16-17-18, 2012
That is when Sharing the Fire moves to Albany, New York! Doesn't this look like a place you might want your
 glass slippers?
( I highly doubt there will be a Ball at the Capitol, but you wouldn't want to miss any of the late night swaps!)

THE END

Unicorn Spotted In New York? White Deer Stories

Whenever nature paints her palette with a new color or a profound event then stories tell us why. For centuries the stories and legends  , myths and hunters tales have captivated our imagination  as we hear about the spirits in the White Deer. I've seen one myself, it is magical especially on a foggy morning when you repeatedly rub sleep from your eyes to believe what creature stands before you! My white deer was seen on several occasions, no mistaking its piebald coat with just a sprinkle of brown spots along the top line. She was not albino but a true piebald ( multi color) with white her predominate color. I count myself most fortunate to have seen her.

To learn more about white deer check out these resources:
 S.E>Schlosser "Spooky New York"  http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/2010/08/auntie_greenleaf_and_the_white.html

http://www.indigenouspeople.net.htm/

from the Lenape People:

The White Deer and other stories Told by the Lenape   isbn: 9780688129002    publ. 1995

I tell about seeing the  White Deer in programs of Nature, Outdoors and Native Peoples when I am storytelling.   For more info on those programs http://www.carolynstearnsstoryteller.com/ 

Trojan Horse A Story for All Ages

                                                                              

The story of the Trojan Horse has been passed down for centuries and become the subject of plays, and movies.  The value of  Greek Myths in education as a tool for understanding cultures and  for building an understanding of history can't be measured.  The Horse figure is a strong attraction, leading to interest in the  study of the war and the people of Troy and Greece.  The use of such an imaginative tool in war and the artistic quality of the horse and its many representations in art since then helps  develop a cross over in curriculum from history to art.
                                                                                     

                                 Mykonos Vase  Trojan Horse Depiction ca. 670 BC

 Adding a storytelling or play  to the process brings other avenues of learning into use as the language, new vocabulary and creation broadens the skill range and taps learning through auditory , tactile and visual stimuli.

A Trojan Horse of Lemons and Oranges at the lemon Festival in Menton France

The story of the Trojan Horse is so universal, the symbol of the horse is easily recognized in many different forms. Here at the  Lemon Festival it has been captured in a citrus rendition. Surprisingly enough even  changed in form we recognize the  Trojan Horse as in this ad.  

  

Resources for Trojan Horse Storytelling:

http://greece.mrdonn.org/trojanwar.html

www.stanford.edu/~plomio/history.html

www.historyforkids.org/learn/greeks/religion/myths/trojanhorse.html

                                                                                                                                             

STF 30 Years, 3 Days, 12 Ways

Here is a musical mashing of an old tune  to celebrate the 30 years of Sharing the Fire the 3 days of the  Northeast Storytelling Conference and the 12 different ways to enjoy a visit to Warwick RI.

Set to the tune Twelve Days of Christmas ( highlights are for singing it back 12  to 1) my apologies to the original  creator of 12 Days!

On the First day of Sharing the Fire your GPS quit enroute
you got  ( and) directions from the one police station

On  the second day of STF you learned  about Warwick,
TWO  Greene's are National Hero's

On the Third day of STF your mentor said to  thee
There are 3 museums in  the town  for you to see

on the fourth day post STF  you declared in glory
4 libraries

On the fifth day post STF your spouse announced to you I should have gone,
 5 Golf Courses!

On the 6 th day post STF you remembered that you heard
6 tellers in the Fri., night concert

On the seventh day post STF you talked about
7 Talented tellers in  Sat eve olio

On the  eighth day post STF you wished the weather permitted visits to
8 Beautiful Beaches

Nine days after Sharing the Fire still digesting
9 workshops in skills and creating story

Ten days post STF were you one of the lucky
10 participants in Loren's intensive

Eleven day after our conference and we're still emailing
11 Old friends visited

Twelve days after Sharing the Fire we pay honor to 30 years of STF & Warwick's
12 famous citizens

www.visitwarwickri.com/info_facts.php

LANES Crew 2010
http://www.lanes.org/

                                                                        

Cowboy & Wills, Monica Holloway; My Review

The temperature outside tonight is in the brisk teens. I have had a very long work week, and yet coming home tonight listening to the last CD in the audio version of Monica Holloway's book Cowboy and Wills, I sat in the driveway wasting precious gas and running the car heater to  stay with Cowboy to the end of her story. 

 If a divine miracle ever walked the earth with a wagging tail and  doggie breath then Cowboy was it. She was shepherd to  Wills as he broke free the restraints of Autism that held him in such a tight grasp and Cowboy led Wills into the world.  The young dog could only stay a brief time with Wills but managed such an important gift of life in  the  2 1/2 years she graced this earth.

Monica Holloway  has managed through tears and joy to share an intimate look into her family life from the darkest hour to moments of profound triumph. Her gift with word has become an inspiration. Cowboy's gift immeasurable!

Listening to Monica Holloway read her book  Cowboy and Wills was a pleasure. This was truly a miracle story and the value of pet therapy can only be validated by this all encompassing look at the  work Cowboy did through love.

Spanish Riding School Vienna Philharmonic Beliebte Annen Polka Johann St...

When I saw this You-Tube clip I was swept back to the days when my children watched the Disney telling of the story of these magnificent horses struggles through World War II.  In the Disney movie The miracle of the White Stallions  the portrayal of General Patton sweeping in to save the  mares  from almost certain  disaster was a inspiration to  an entire generation of horse lovers.

The movie has come out on DVD and is available at all the usual outlets. I encourage all who love a good story to  buy or borrow this classic Disney and introduce a young generation to  a wonderful story. These incredible athletes are so compelling to watch over and over!  Enjoy! The Miracle of the White Stallions from the Spanish Riding School in Vienna.  Certainly  a storytelling adventure in a grand scale!