My Big Fish Tale

This week I decided to watch one of the suggested movies on the syllabus, Big Fish, a tale about a strained relationship between a father and son. The story entails a father who tells his life story as an epic tale to his son.  At first the son enjoys the stories; however, as the son grows older, he begins to question the authenticity of each story.  Only during the most intimate moment, the son becomes satisfied that he finally connected with his father and is astonished when he  personally meets the characters of his father’s stories. Overall, Big Fish demonstrates that storytelling is a passion, passed from generation to generation.

Passing down stories from generation to generation best expresses how storytelling connects us.  As we talked on the first day of class, storytelling is about connecting.  Big Fish, not only told a story about a storyteller, but also how stories connect us to one another. Personally, I connected with Big Fish as the main character, Edward Bloom reminded me of my father.  Not only the parallel of my father dying, but the fact that my father liked to tell “tall tales” connected me to the story.  I have numerous stories that remind me how much Dad had his own fairytales: beauty queen judging, monster bashes, and farm life.  One  of the last stories I remember is when shortly after having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, my dad told several of the neighborhood kids that a shark bit him and that he had to battle the shark for his life.  Cancer was that shark.  A couple of years ago, my mother ran into his oncologists who clearly remembered Dad as “the jokester that tried to fool death.” 

After nearly 35 years, I still miss my Dad.  However, I still feel connected to him every time I share one of his tales.  Thanks, Big Fish for connecting us again. 

With A Happy Heart,

Cynde

NPR - Public Storyteller

            After class last week I listened to radio broadcasts a little differently, perhaps due to a “metacognitive state of mind”.  What I realized is that DJ’s are “spinners” of tales and storytellers.  I have always wondered if I missed my calling by not pursuing my first “degree” choice as a freshman in college, Radio Broadcasting.  At the time, I felt that I only had the personality, not the “voice”.  In all honesty, it was a field still dominated by males. In retrospect, I think I would have enjoyed the field, especially a public radio format, not the usual DJ format. 

           One thought lead to another, and as usual I got to thinking about public radio and its future.  With declining ratings and competition from satellite radio and other audio formats, could it be eliminated?  Can it stand out as both an entertainment and information source that comes without direct cost to listeners? I did a little research and found that most industry insiders and observers seem to agree that radio has lost some ground with listeners and needs to make adjustments. First and foremost, broadcast radio should remove the homogenized broadcasts of the 20^th Century.  Gone are the days of male DJ domination with formatting that competes with like minded stations!!!  I guess I still might have a slim opportunity to host a show???
           In the age of subscriber-based media, satellite radio and mobile technology have guided the radio industry by allowing listeners to customize radio to their individual tastes. Like public radio, satellite and mobile technology are commercial free, a huge plus for many weary of the ad-saturated media.  In contrast to public radio, both formats utilize a fee to listeners.  One of our cars has satellite radio as my husband is a huge fan of Howard Stern and loves his “XM Sirius” radio format. He often listens to the show more than the music stations while working and travelling from job site to job site. I enjoy the commercial free music channels.  NPR has joined the ranks of Sirius; nonetheless, the local broadcasted programming remains - local. 
           Again, I this makes me think about what could be done to circumvent this? I suggest podcasting regional programming to promote the progress of local shows such as The Public Storyteller in gaining more listeners and a wider reach. By using the archives as automatic feeds via the Internet, Florida Storytellers could be heard around the world.  This would be a valuable addition to the show and enable all those that missed the broadcast the opportunity to listen via their mobile devices. 
         Check it out my favorite podcast...

With a Happy Heart,

Cynde

 

Postcrossing: Storytelling Across The Miles

             I usually write/upload my art/thoughts on Tumblr; however, due to a class assignment to keep a journal I've decided to write my "stories" here.

            Having not written in free thought for quite some time, this is more challenging than I anticipated.  I have gotten used to academic writing with all of its formality. I use a reflection blog for all my classes I teach, and after this week I can understand some of my students anguish in tying in the lesson of the week with their daily life. Several concepts came to mind this week, and only one stood out.  I have recently joined a new project called Postcrossing.  The main goal of the project is to exchange postcards with people all over the world.   Their mission is to “connect people across the world through postcards, independent of their location, age, gender, race or beliefs” (postcrossing.com).  I loved the idea mostly due to postcards consisting of three things I love (a) visual rhetoric, photography or art; (b) the idea of participating in a shared memory (story) with another person, and: (c) a collectible item to pack away for others to find at an antique mall 50 years from now.

            Clearly with the all the electronic means of communication, pen, paper and postcards have vanished.   Most snail mail (aka letters and postcards, not bills) tells a story and evokes a connection to friends and family. They also share a slice of history that can educate you on national identity.  Postcards are the perfect way to get educated on places you may never visit in person and provide deeper, more emotional connection with people around the world. Yes, electronic messages and  text are certainly an enjoyable way to reconnect and communicate on a daily basis, but the suspense and anticipation of receiving a letter in the email goes missing. How many of us “print out a love letter” to store in an old shoebox to reread for nostalgia? I would guess, very few.

            As humans, or homo narrans, we communicate instinctually, craving the interpersonal connections of sharing, discussing and sending our deepest feelings and thoughts to one another. The intimate bilateral communication between two letter writers is so much more than communication.  It is a story.  With the touch of the paper, the feeling of seeing it in the mailbox, and the running across it years later creates a visceral connection that an email, tweet or post cannot.  Letters and postcards are personal stories, not a dying art.  While Tweets, FB and social media sites are more akin to speech with one clear message, letter writing parallels oral storytelling giving the reader a connection, kindling an emotion, and providing meaning between writers.

             Ironicially, Postcrossing is an online project; however, as a member you receive random “surprises”in the mailbox, the joy of finding the right postcard, and the ability to a tale to someone in a far away land. Check it out, postcrossings.com.

 

Post script: My first sent postcard was received today!!!

 

 

 

With A Happy Heart,

 

Cynde

 

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