There’s always something special about our December evenings – are we unconsciously thinking of the solstice that’s just around the corner as we approach the heart of Winter? Is it just that we need reassurance when Jack Frost is nipping at the door, or inspiration in the long dark nights that allows us dream the dreams that will make our lives richer and help us find the stories we need to nurture us? Or is it just that we have an inner dormant self, waiting to be taken out of our selves and shown a bright mirror to help us recognise our strengths and weaknesses, our hopes and fears with new eyes and the knowledge that we can dream easy.
This all takes concentration and the heightened requirement of not letting our minds wander – stories can do this for us – and a story told by someone who has really embraced that story, has lived it in their own thinking, has in fact become part of that story, is the guide we should all be looking for.
We found one in December, with a telling that allowed us to be carried away on the wings of story. Even if you are listening to a story that you may know, when a teller really knows the length and breadth and depth of that story, and enters into it with a complete understanding of all the emotions and challenges it contains, we as listeners can float along in our own seeing of the story – and inhabit it as well.
We witnessed great skill, great care and wonderful telling in December. It was a real treat and a privilege to be there. Thank you Jo