Storytelling is the most powerful medium which brings people together!
As we stand on the threshold of evolution and extinction wondering what the future beholds, how do we want our humankind’s story to progress?
Will we ever realize that we have the power to tell a different story? A hopeful one?
TED speaker and author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s words and speech echo in my mind -“Stories are powerful, but there lurks a danger in a single story”.
The result of “one story” is that it robs us of enlightenment and the true picture that a culture/people can put forth. It highlights how we are different, rather than how we are similar!
To prove the point, let me share a personal experience. For most of my life, I have lived within India, travelling often, to lands far away.
Recently on a trip to Europe, whilst trying to pick a place for lunch, we were pleasantly welcomed by a cheerful restaurant owner wanting to know where we were from. The reply “India” produced a rather shocking reaction from him. “Oh, the land of elephants, crowds, and Bollywood,” he said. I wasn’t startled by the response.
If I had not spent my life in India, had grown up elsewhere and all I knew about India was from popular search engine pictures and facts, I too would probably think it was a land of big elephants, large crowds, and snake charmers!
Over the years, unfortunately, the world has probably heard and seen more of these things about India and today, as a result, we have become just that. Tucked away in these crowds, colour & people are years of unending ancient wisdom and knowledge.
One of the biggest issues we face is the ‘narrative gap’. There is a huge divide between the knowledge we already possess versus how it is expressed globally.
We do not celebrate our wisdom enough or praise the ideas that can help fight global problems and bring in a sustainable lifestyle.
The disheartening fact in this narrative is, there is always a winner and loser. What we fail to see is the fact that we are all bound by the same ‘one energy’. We are all interconnected, not only to each other but to the whole ecosystem.
Despite this knowledge, we continue with ‘one story’ that keeps us from understanding our interdependence, a force that can empower people, restore faith and help us all see the importance of being interdependent and connected.
shree_bhaskar@yahoo.com
Author’s bio
Shreelata is a Community Alchemist/ Social Impact Coach. storytelling storytelling
