Storytelling to Make Sense of the World

We are living through a historic moment. Years from now, parents will tell their children of the year when the Earth stood still. They will tell stories of tragedies and triumphs. Everyone will tell stories. Stories connect humanity. Without stories, we are empty. We listen to stories, so we can connect with others. We tell our stories, so we can heal. Every day, you are telling yourself a story from the moment you wake up until you fall asleep. Writer Joan Didion wrote, “We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” More specifically, we tell ourselves stories to make sense of things.

We tell ourselves stories so we can unpack and process what we have been through. In my opinion, the best kind of stories we have are stories from our childhood. These stories could be about the time you visited your grandparents and saw a movie with them. It could be about a time you spent a day with your friends at the park. It could be anything that was meaningful to you. It must be a story that left a mark on you, whatever that means. These are stories that helped us grow as people. They are a part of us. For this writing prompt, write about a day in your childhood that meant the world to you.

This writing prompt has three requirements:

1.    Write about a day in your childhood that was meaningful to you. Try to explore why this memory is so important to you.

2.    Write up to 800 words.

3.    Pour your heart out.

For example, when I was a child, my granddad and I saw the movie ‘Because of Winn-Dixie’ all the way back in 2005. It was a moment I still think about to this day. My granddad died a few years later. At his funeral, I sat in the pews of the church remembering the day he decided to accept my invitation to see this movie. I am Fijian and, in my culture, our grandparents are cherished and respected immensely.

When our grandparents spend time with us, we view it as an honor. In 2005, I did not understand the depth of the moment. In 2020, I still think about the great man who was my granddad and the few adventures we had together. We had a few more adventures that left an impact on my life. However, this one seemed to have a lasting effect because we were the only audience for the movie at my house that day. After my granddad passed away, I heard about all the good things he did for people. Strangers would tell me about his kindness. It is a privilege to be a part of a family with such a great granddad who truly believed in being a kind person of good character.