Sunday 6 February 2011

storytelling sunday

Sian comes up with the best ideas. I'm so jealous that Sian and Mel got to meet recently, but now I know why The Tall One is called such!

I've spent random moments thinking about storytelling Sunday, knowing that it was today. Seeing a police car on the side of the road with a bicycle rider made me think of the time I was pulled over on my bike by a police car.

"But I can't share that story, I don't have a photo"

We've been clearing our shed of water-damaged items, and one of the kids dropped something on the trailer, reminding me of the time my dad threw a tea cup at me and it shattered on the trailer.

"But I can't share that, I don't have a photo"

"But I can't share that, it's not a happy story"

I remember Chloe finding a photo of my dad when she was about 3, and asking who it was. "you have a dad?" she asks.

"But I can't share that, it's not a happy story"

But despite that inner voice that says "I can't", I'm going to share the stories. They are part of my story, making me who I am today.

Do you tell the sad stories? How do you share stories without photos?
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11 comments

  1. Bravo, Cate! You tell those stories :)

    This is one of the things we have been doing in the Yesterday and Today class - one suggestion has been to use simple blocks of patterened paper at the top of your page and then journaling underneath, or serach for a photo from one of the photo library sites. We talked on the forum and lots of us said that thinking about the sad stories made us feel bad at the start but once they wre on paper we always felt better.

    Thank you for this thoughtful contribution. I hope you tell those stories x

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  2. i dont think it matters whether u have a photo of the event, how about a web search for one similar or else as sian suggested using papers.
    Jo xxxx

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  3. I also had this dilemma - the time before digital photos and scrapbooking when each photo had to be rationed because you could run out of film and each print had to be paid for meant I didn't take pictures of everything and anything. I think these stories should be told though and am going to choose one next month - they can always be illustrated with a photo from the correct era can't they? Or blocks of patterned paper as Siân has suggested.

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  4. Good for you! Yes, these stories all go towards making us who we are, and they have their place in our albums, too. I've made several layouts without photos. You could use 'stock' photos of a police car and/or bike, or cut out a motif from a suitable paper, or use a sticker, or a patterned paper with a traffic motif.... Or just go for a simple design with papers and journaling?

    As for the stories that aren't so happy, why not incorporate a pocket or envelope into the layout so you can hide away those thoughts, but know that they're recorded? I've found it cathartic to write about some of the stories from my life that haven't been happy.

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  5. I never share sad stories....but today I have for the first time....and I think it was a good thing to do.
    Pages without photos are very difficult I find.....but love Sian's ideas today...and Mel's in the comment above.

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  6. Oh, yes, do tell those stories. Like Sian already said, it was suggested early on in the Y&T class and I've now done it twice ... not blogged, but I do feel better about 'telling' the stories.

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  7. I think it is therapeutic to share some of the not-so-great stories. I suggest using a photo from that time even if it's not necessarily a photo of that incident or simply do a page without a photo.

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  8. I'm taking the same class as Sian and Ali suggested you may not want to share all your stories but you can still make the layouts without the photos. Sometimes that makes the story even more powerful. Thank you for sharing.

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  9. What powerful tidbits you have shared already. I get braver all the time about telling sad stories. Thanks for sharing.
    Rinda

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  10. Very though provoking post today. So far I haven't shared any sad or painful stories - I really need to though. I have though done layouts I don't have pictures for. Usually I use an embellishment or a stock photo that somehow relates to the story in some way.

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  11. This is a lovely post as it stands! I don't think you need to use a photo, like the others on here, there are other ways to illustrate a story or leave the pictures in your head & we will make our own. I haven't been able to contribute to Sian's Sunday Story with or without a photo yet! so well done for this x

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