dverselogoBefore I was a poet, I was a storyteller. More than a storyteller I was a collector of stories. There is power in stories.

As a kid I read. We talked about this a few weeks ago. For me it was an escape into adventure. At the heart of it was the story. The power of the story to capture my imagination and my heart.

One of my favorite books series growing up was called Dragonlance. It was the story of a band of friends that same together to conquer the forces of an evil god. The group of companions was diverse, all different races. There was action, romance, betrayal, loss. They met people along the way. Their stories mingled with others.

The original three book series quickly expanded to include books on what happened before and after and then onto some of the minor characters and what their stories were that led to the moment they met the companions.

The series is still going on today and measures well over one hundred books.

Much like this series of books, we are surrounded by stories—stories that have brought us to this point and there are tens if not hundreds or thousands of people that have played a part of our story—each with stories of their own.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to listen as a group of people shared their stories.

A man talked of the anger he felt at how his life turned out, how one thing added to another until it began tearing at his family. A woman shared of betrayal and how it colored the way she looked at others. A teen told of the life she lived in the shadow of expectations people put on her because of who her father was.

In some way, I have been all these people. I can relate. Maybe not directly, but in some way.

Stories can bring us together.

In stories we realize how similar (yet unique) we all are.

The story we tell also says much about who we believe we are.

I could talk about story telling all day—and I could sit and listen to stories for weeks at a time if you let me.

It is one of the reasons we chose the pub in our name. It’s a place people gather and you can hear stories.

Today, let’s tell a few stories. Let’s hear who each other are.

But keep it brief—you get three sentences—and no Poet Punctuation (haha) or lack there of—Give us the brief synopsis of you…or maybe a defining moment.

Three sentences.

Just leave it in the comments—there is no link—or use this to inspire your piece for OpenLinkNight tomorrow—tomorrow we turn 100—100 weeks—&all those stories. Smiles.

~Brian