I’m packing up my stories and taking them with me.

I’m moving from one side of town to the other, condensing a three bedroom house with lots of storage into a shared space so I am paring down my belongings.  It’s a very slow process because each item requires a decision and because of all the memories that are evoked.

Everything that I own is passing through my fingers and bringing multiple layers of personal stories to mind. The kitchen table I use every day was the first piece of furniture my parents bought when they got married in 1942. The comfortable heavy wood chair in the living room was my father’s “Archie Bunker chair.” The drawing of mountains in Nepal from Jennifer Sargent’s thesis show. The candlesticks my grandmother brought on the boat from Hungary when she immigrated to America in 1910. The crooked ceramic bowl my son made in grade school. A large mixed media artwork I made from 720 slide mounts. Hundreds of photos, each one reminding me of the time it was taken and the story behind it.

If you want to remember some of your personal stories, look around your home and be inspired by the things that are important enough that you keep on packing and moving them to the next house.

Odyssey Storytelling is wandering around Tucson looking for your stories.

Penelope Starr and Kirsten Larsen

A few months ago we (the board of StoryArts Group, which includes me) decided that 2nd Saturdays Downtown would be a great place to find storytellers. Our plan was mostly unformed but evolved with a little bit of luck and a bit of organizing.

First off was to ask Julie Ray if we could transform her Burrito Files Cart into the Story Cart. Julie had finished her project where she did a whimsical and interesting interview process with people in downtown Tucson. I knew the custom made cart was gathering dust in her yard so I asked if we could revive it and she was happy to see it get a new life.

Next up was paint and signage so no one would confuse us with an ice cream cart (but of course, some people still do). With a little help from the Tucson Pima Arts Council in the form of a GOS grant we were able to buy a portable PA system. We loaded it up, along with the digital camera, and we were good to go.

Penelope Starr and Adam Hostetter

In addition to 2nd Saturdays, we’ve taken the cart to Tucson Meet Yourself and here you can see Adam and me in front of the Tucson Children’s Museum. We hope to do more events in the future. Our objective is to find diverse tellers, young and old, to share their personal stories on a variety of themes.

People can be shy at first to talk in front of a camera and many people just walk on by but the ones that stop and talk with us are pretty amazing! We’ve heard about a New Year’s Eve escape on a boat from Cuba 20 years ago to a wife’s tragic death from cancer to college pranks.

Kids can be remarkable storytellers.  At the Children’s Museum for a celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we were amazed by the insight and knowledge of one 7 year old girl and delighted when a 5 year old sang We Shall Overcome for us while her very proud father looked on.

You can see a few videos on our website from the Story Cart and from our regular monthly shows at the Club Congress. And keep checking back as we add more videos.

Odyssey Storytelling is a program of StoryArts Group, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit volunteer run arts organization.  We can use some help getting more videos online so please contact me if you have some experience and would like to be involved in story capturing.

Photo by Luanne Withee

The first time I heard about the horrible shooting of Gabrielle Giffords and 19 other people at a Tucson grocery store on January 8, was on Facebook. As the details were revealed, I was attached to the TV, online news websites, Facebook and Twitter, hungry for more information.

A lot has been said about how quickly word got out and how some of it was not accurate and had to be corrected. “Facts” were flying around the news and social media and, although I wanted to know what happened, I also had a strong desire to hear from the people that were affected and involved with this tragedy – witnesses, responders, victims.  In order for it to feel real to me, I needed to hear personal stories rather than a string of events.

Now the heroism of the senior citizens who tacked the shooter and the tragic irony of the birth date (9/11/01) of the 9-year-old girl who was killed are coming out. The stories put a face on this surreal event. It makes me want to cry all over again.

As impromptu vigils popped up around town at Gabby’s district field office, UMC hospital, churches and synagogues, I was struck by our human need to be with others in a time of tragedy. One friend said of the poignant scene at Gabby’s office, where hundreds of people have come by to bring flowers and light candles, “oddly (it’s) of some comfort to just stand in silence with others in front of a sea of condolences.”

Don’t wait until a time of crisis to come together with your loved ones and share your stories.