A storytale is my contribution to the well-being of humankind. That includes my own well-being. Likely no one enjoys the storytales I write more than I do. That’s because I call to mind an image of what I am writing. I will just go ahead and admit that I often get a few chuckles and sometimes a good old deep belly laugh with convulsions and tears. I am alone when I write, so no one comes to haul me away.
The writer of Proverbs in the Bible (King Solomon is credited with many of them) said, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones” (chapter 17, verse 22, King James Version). I also like the Good News Translation which says, “Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time.” Health science and the Bible are in agreement that humor is healthy.
I like to say I’m a storytaler. A storytale is sort of a hybrid of a story and a tale. A story might be true or maybe mostly true. A tale is, well, just that—a tale. It may be just a little bit true, but more than a little bit would be a real stretch. A storytale is sort of like starting off with what could be a story and then doctoring it up with a bit of tale-ish-ness. If the story sounds unbelievable, it could be a storytale!
One of my favorite storytales is about Miz Rosemary Overstreet. Almost 70 years ago, she was the Sunday School teacher for ages eight to eleven at the Friendly Village Church. It was the time of year when those pesky little yellow and black wasps built nests in church outhouses. Miz Rosemary had a habit of dismissing her Sunday School class just a few minutes early for personal reasons. One Sunday there was a lot of commotion down the little path to the outhouse…
Storytales may find their way onto this site. If little squiggly lines and the stain of tears show up in the type, you’ll know I was deeply enjoying “merry medicine”. I don’t ever want to compromise my effectiveness in helping people by getting too far into craziness. But craziness in moderation can be one way to be helpful. Anyway, I don’t want to be too sane. I’ve tried sanity, and I think a little crazy is better. Maybe a few upcoming storytales will help you dance around the edge of sanity.
“A little ridicularity goeth a long way.” (Proverbs 98:6, King Daniel Version).
Words and People 