We’ve all been watching the evolution of the government’s attempt to tell us the healthiest way to eat for a while now. They use graphics to tell us the story of what foods we should consume. Using a picture story is a way to reach non-literate people as well as a more appealing tactic than a lecture.

Here’s the original official United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) food pyramid from 1992

According to Wikipedia, “It was updated in 2005 with colorful vertical wedges replacing the horizontal sections and renamed MyPyramid. MyPyramid was often displayed with the food images absent, creating a more abstract design.”

I love the figure running up the stairs to get to the top. If it were the older version, it would be chasing after the fats, oils and sweets (like most of us.) You can see how stories emerge from the visuals.

Take this charming illustration from The Harvard School of Public Health

I was wondering what the feet at the bottom were supposed to represent until I read their tips for following the Healthy Eating Pyramid and then I realized that exercise is the biggest component. The items floating on the upper left corner indicate taking vitamins and drinking booze.  The website says that “moderate drinking for many people can have real health benefits, but it’s not for everyone. Those who don’t drink shouldn’t feel that they need to start.”

The Mayo Clinic has taken a stance to embrace them all and gives you options at their website.  You can click on an interactive pyramid to get a choice of Asian, Mediterranean, Mayo Clinic, Vegetarian and Latin American diets plus the new My Plate from the USDA

Now, the USDA doesn’t want you to get confused so they’ve simplified the chart down to a visual we can all understand; a divided plate. No stairs, no pictures of beautiful fresh veggies and blood dripping meat. Just the facts, unembellished, straightforward and, in my opinion, it doesn’t tell the whole story.

Edie Jarolim told a story about how being a nervous first time dog owner lead her to writing a book for new owners called Am I Boring My Dog. Kim Lowry told about writing and presenting a play about her recovery from a traumatic brain injury.  Jerry Farnsworth was in El Tour de Tucson when he had a heart attack and recovered to tell the story of the insights he had because of the experience.

Silver Linings: The Gratitude Show, stories about things working much better than expected, was the theme at a recent Odyssey Storytelling event.  Seven tellers got up on stage and shared important personal life-changing stories to a very appreciative audience.  Not only did the tellers feel empowered by the experience but the audience was inspired and moved by the stories of loss and triumph.  People were able to identify with the theme, if not the exact circumstances of a story, and offer the teller empathy and understanding.

Diverse themes are chosen for the precise purpose of covering a great range of the human experience.  Sometimes the stories are humorous and sometimes they bring tears to the eye, both are valid ways of expressing a feeling. But the most important element is that people tell their truth as they see it. There’s a real human need to be heard and to be seen exactly as we are with no pretense.  If the audience is a room full of strangers or just one other person, the power of storytelling can transform people’s lives.

I always tell people that public storytelling is not therapy, but it’s therapeutic.

If you want to tell your story on stage, contact me.