Storytelling in an Alternative School

The post below came up in my Facebook feed today. My cousin Siobhan posted it four years ago (thank you!).

It is a post I had written the day before about teaching Storytelling in an alternative school in Oakridge, Tennessee. 

Many of you know that I was a prison chaplain in the largest men's prison in Maryland before becoming a professional storyteller. Since then I have gone into several alternative schools where young people are either on their way to, or are returning from, Juvenile Detention Centers. 

I love teaching stories in those settings. In a couple of cases I turned the students' stories into a show that was performed the same night. That is real hold your-breath- and-pray-that-it succeeds, seat of the pants teaching. 

What I particularly love is to see young people, who have often come from extremely difficult life situations, blossom as they tell their stories and are heard, really heard - sometimes for the first time. 

I love to see mutual understanding and appreciation flow between fellow class members as they share their stories. And to see the audience respond with wholehearted astonishment and admiration  as one tale of bravery and overcoming follows the next. 

Magic happens and I love to be part of that miracle. 

I always hope and pray that some lives might be changed through the process and they might be spared the almost inevitable transition to adult prison. 

I also always pray that I might be able to do much more of this work in the future. 

May it be so, Lord. Amen. 

 

From May 7, 2019

"I have had the most extraordinary day. I was booked by a Storytelling Festival committee in Oak Ridge, Tennessee to pioneer a new program for their City’s school system. They have a special school within a school called the Secret Academy for children who are failing both educationally and at life, often because of very disruptive home situations. The young people often get into trouble because of adverse reactions to those pressures. These are the kids who never have recitals or concerts for their adults to attend because they never take part in those kind of programs. The incredibly kind and caring Storytellers and Educators in the City decided to change that. They hired me to hold a concert for 6th through 10th graders consisting of personal stories that the students had developed that day - quite a challenge!

Starting at 8.00am I taught a three hour workshop followed by brief lunch and an afternoon workshop. Then we gathered together for a quick dress rehearsal before the concert. 

It was a magic - if exhausting - day!

The headmaster was amazed at what went on in the workshops leading up to the concert. The students, who usually have short attention spans, were fully engaged in the story exercises and the preliminary sharing of stories. They developed their main stories, told them to each other and then told them to the class. He told me afterwards that some of the students that got up in front of their peers and shared personal stories never open their mouths in class. He was astounded to see how they participated. 

There were heart-rending stories, hilarious stories, and stories that made you wonder how these young people had survived. And those stories worked their magic. The bonding, support, and understanding that grew and then flowed in those workshops was palpable. 

The Storytelling Committee organized and sponsored a hearty pasta dinner before the evening concert. Not all the students could make it back to school in the evening, but the ones who did were excellent. We supplemented their tales with stories from a teacher and the headmaster. Both did a fabulous job. And I rounded out the day with some of my stories. The Storytellers and Educators were all thrilled with the result. And I sloped off at the end of the event exhausted but exhilarated, once again amazed at the power of story to touch and transform lives. 

Tomorrow I have agreed to speak to the local chapter of the Rotary club with the hope that they will raise the money needed so we can do it again next year. The only thing is that it is a crack-of-dawn club, and I am a genuine night owl. I will be picked up from here at 6.45am tomorrow morning (gulp!).  After the meeting I will check out of my hotel and head towards Jonesborough, where I’ll be staying for a couple of nights before heading home. Hurrah!"