I love a good joke and even more, a good story. I’m particularly fond of lingering around the table with my young adult children, just to connect and talk. But when I can only reach them by phone my familiar prompt often gets things going: It’s so good to talk with you. Got any good stories to tell me?
One story comes from a friend of my daughter who had been jarred awake by the alarm she’d set. Even though she was tired she pulled herself out of bed and made her way to the kitchen. She had a lot to do and knew that even though she wasn’t really hungry, she’d better eat breakfast and get a move on the day. As she walked through the house she caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror: her eyes were only half open and streaked slightly because she’d been too tired to remove her eye make-up the night before. She saw her dark curls as nothing but a disorganized mess on her head.
“If only real life resembled the movies!” she thought, opening the frige to grab the milk. Involved in her own thoughts, she failed to notice her younger brother, sitting at the kitchen table. It was his sweet voice that broke into her private thoughts.
“I know you probably won’t believe me, but I think you’re beautiful,” he commented between bites of cereal.
There is joy in sharing a moment that fills your heart each time you tell it. Or makes you laugh. Or connects you with a perfect stranger. Or honors someone you know and appreciate. As writer Dave Isay says in his book, “Listening Is an Act of Love”: “Telling stories shakes us out of a reality TV-induced slumber and redirects our energy toward careful listening, honoring our elders and embracing our neighbors.”
When my dad was alive, he enjoyed spending time with my son Dan. Dad would compliment Dan through the years by saying, “Dan, you’re a gentleman and a scholar.” This compliment was only gifted to Dan and he looks back on those moments with great fondness, especially when he misses being with his granddad.
One day, Dan ran into a local store to grab a cold drink and approached an older woman doing her shopping while seated in an electric scooter. She was doing her best to reach an item on an upper shelf, but it was placed far above her head.
“Can I give you a hand?” Dan asked as she worked to raise herself precariously from her seat. She took him up on his offer and pointed out the item. As he set the jar in her basket she looked up at him and offered her appreciation with these words: “Thank you young man. You’re a gentleman and a scholar.”
Tell your stories. There is laughter and beauty in this life and it’s meant to be shared.
