Storytelling

So we’re done stomping around in my memories. I hope my flashbacks have perhaps encouraged you to think about your history. Share it with your kids. A few weeks ago one of my children said she was going to print out my entries so she could keep them. When we go through family pictures it will help give her a frame of reference. Unlike looking through my husband’s family pictures, where we live on the same piece of property he lived on as a child. There again, not saying one is better than another. Just different.

I’ve been really inspired lately by people who spin a good yarn. Tell a good tale. I’d like to be a story teller. I wish I could make stuff up from beginning to end. Oh, I have made up plenty of things but I sometimes wish I could write a book or at least a really good “novelette” or feature. It must have been really exciting back in the day to sit around a radio and listen for the story to start. Or around a campfire, horses and cattle settled down for the evening. I’ve had some great conversations around a fire. I’ve also had some really good silences around a fire.

We had a bonfire at our home a couple weeks ago. It was a spur of the moment kind of thing and was actually proposed by a family member. He had some wood scraps left from a home project and asked if he could bring it out to burn. Next, he wondered about a gathering around the fire and a get together was formed. As it turns out, it was a small, enjoyable crowd. The fire was hot, and crackly and reflecting off the water as the moon and stars came out. There were boisterous party noises across the lake and an occasional motor could be heard as boats returned to their slips and docks, or perhaps a late night cruise. One boat was on the hunt for frogs and we observed as it trolled along the shore, it’s search slow and near silent. We found ourselves whispering as it passed. The evening served as a reverent acknowledgement of the birth of a new boy. There were cigars and microbrews, a lovely, mild evening, plenty of dark and an interesting mix of folks. It was good...and life is.