A friend of mine had a party the other night that was a great success. Usually I avoid parties, especially ones where the only person I know will be the host. I’m just too introverted to mingle with strangers. But this party was structured in a way that it made “mingling” unnecessary.
12 people came, each bearing desserts. That turned out to be, in my opinion, an ideal number of individuals. Not too many, not too few. (And of course you can never have too many desserts.)
We all sat in a circle, and the host explained the rules. She’d start off, asking for a certain type of story. We’d all think for a minute, and then someone would tell one that pertained to the topic. It had to be a true story about them or a very close relative. When that person was done, if people wanted to ask questions, they could. But after that, it was that storyteller’s turn to ask for a story of a different topic. And so on. There was no pressure to tell a story if you didn’t want to.
That night we heard stories of courage, of surprises, and of starting over, to name just a few. We all got to learn some amazing things about each other, without having to break off into little awkward mingling subsets. At no time did I feel uncomfortable, and no one seemed to feel left out. No room for wallflowers when you sit in a circle! The time flew by and I enjoyed myself quite a bit.
I look forward to the next storytelling party. Maybe I’ll see you there!
The View from a Drawbridge 
What a great idea! Loved that you went! 😀
You’d have loved it, Amelia. And you might try this if you’re ever at a point where you run out of podcast ideas. The people you know the best will often surprise you with stories you’d never heard.
Sounds very ancient and tribal. Only things missing are the fire and drums. The thing I miss most about my grandmother and great aunt was their story telling when they gathered the tribe together. They had a way of entertaining while passing on histories and valuable lessons that you can’t get from books or movies.
And it’s a sense of fellowship that’s hard to get any other way.
I would be awesome at those parties…
You would, for sure. You should do one.
oh… hey…