On the Road with Storytelling

The first week of October I spent on the road with Margaret Read MacDonald. We had quite a tour of Nova Scotia — from tiny art galleries to elementary schools to university lectures to an all-girls high school English class and finally to the Nova Scotia Library Association conference, we took storytelling on the road.  In light of a recent PUBYAC discussion, I thought it fitting to remind everyone that storytelling is alive and well. The discussion was about who is still telling stories. Not reading from picture books, but actual, old-school, oral storytelling. The fact that a discussion even had to be brought up concerned me a bit– storytelling should be so prevalent that no-one should have to ask who is still doing it! I am glad to say that everywhere we went, storytelling was thoroughly enjoyed.  We started at a little art gallery in Annapolis Royal. Turnout was low due to Hurricane Kyle’s threatening winds and warnings of impending doom (goes to show you should listen to stories, not TV weather). But those who braved the non-storm had a great time. Next day we were off to the Port Williams elementary school, where 250 children, ages 4-11, were kept enthralled by Ms. MacDonald’s rowdy storytelling.  After a bit of sight-seeing and a great bowl of fish chowder, we were off to Halifax and a lecture at Mt. St. Vincent University, where over 30 student-teachers showed up to hear about the importance of sharing stories. Then to a fabulous dinner with the Halifax Storyteller’s guild, and then a 3-hour drive to the tip of Cape Breton, in the dark and rain.  Bringing stories to the world is a perilous job, but someone has to do it! The next day was for sight-seeing and rock collecting, and then on the next day to Sydney for another elementary school, another university lecture, and finally, a high-school English class.  A word of advice for anyone planning a tour like this–feed your tellers well. A grueling schedule with no lunch can lead to some funny stories in the afternoon! After Cape Breton, it was off to the Valley for the NSLA annual conference, where Ms. MacDonald did a full-day workshop and two sessions on storytelling. By the end of conference there were brave new tellers ready to go out and share stories, and I knew several  MRM stories by heart. So yes, storytelling is still happening, is still alive and thriving, and we should all be keeping it so by promoting and sharing the art. Get inspired and tell someone a story today!