"We revisit our own stories as our children's stories are written. Sharing our favorite books and memories with them connects us to our past, present, and future. Our shared family history and culture are valuable pieces of identity for our children, and we give them a context and structure in which to expand their own identity.
Our children are likely to make up "make-believe" stories, and we can also encourage them to tell autobiographical stories, even if it's just relating a funny incident from their school day. The point is to encourage their storytelling, and we do this first by promoting them, and then by listening...
...Storytelling is like a trip backward in time. Since the first humans sat around the fire, stories have been shared among people. Stories are passed on from one generation to the next, the thread of ancestry that connects us to our past and our future. Children love to hear stories from their parents' childhood, or stories of their grandparents' or great-grandparents' adventures...
...By sharing, we connect. By sharing, we define ourselves. Telling a story, we claim ownership over it. Encouraging others to do the same, we encourage their growth and independence as they name themselves and their experience...
...Story time can double as lesson time. Your characters can live and learn, just as your listening children can also learn. Often, our children have stories to tell, as well. Our job is simply to listen as our children continue the story that began long before us."
-Julia Cameron
snapshot of my beloved, creative child a few years ago when he was only two years old...
I adore being a mother...it is a privilege and a blessing to practice the art of motherhood...
I am a storyteller. I married a storyteller. I gave birth to a storyteller. The time has come to share our stories within the pages of published books...
