A Note from the President

Hello my friends,

Thanksgiving Day may have passed but we continue to be thankful everyday for all we have and all we are and all we hope to be. Our bellies were filled and hopefully our hearts were also. There were lots of stories at our Thanksgiving feast and lots of hugs were shared. I hope you were blessed this Thanksgiving Day with stories and hugs as well.

Now we are into the other holiday festivities. There are so many holidays this time of year. They are holidays that are full of light and joy. Think of the holiday you celebrate. It could be Christmas, Hanukkah, Diwali, Advent, Posada, or Kwanzaa. (I am sure there are many more.) They are all signified with the light from candles. They are all lights in the darkness of winter. What holidays do you celebrate with family and friends? What are the stories behind them? Tell them, teach them and share them with the world.

If you can join us on December 11 at 10 am, MO- TELL has a special gift this year for storytellers and would be storytellers. There will be a workshop with Judy Sima on creating your historical story.

I am so grateful for all of you.

As always,

Joyce Slater

President of MO-TELL

Story of the Month: The Worry Bundles

adapted from an old Jewish Folktale with permission from Annette Harrison, Master Storyteller

A woodcutter thought he had all the worries in the world. He was miserable. He felt he had more troubles than he could bear. One day, on his way to cut wood, he met on old woman. He told her about his worries. She listened carefully and told him she could help him.

The old woman took him to a large cave full of sacks and told him these were the worry bundles of all the villagers. Some bundles were rather small and others quite large. “You may look in each sack and exchange your worry bundle for any of the others, but choose wisely.” she told him.

The woodcutter was overjoyed and relieved. He spent a good deal of time examining the worry bundles of the other villagers. At the end of the day he started to leave the cave with his own because he realized that everyone in the village had worries and troubles and he was no worse off than anyone else. The woman said, “Don’t forget your blessing bundle. Everyone has one but often they forget."

He found his own and saw all his blessings: his family, his work, his friends, his animals, and much more.

The man went home feeling good. Sometimes he complained a bit, but he was never miserable again.

MO-TELL Member of the Month: Lee Giezentanner

The first thing I ever recall that influenced me to do storytelling was when my dad used to tell me stories about liars contests they used to have decades ago. That got me thinking about how cool that must’ve been when people would have a contest to see who is the best liar.

Years later, when I was finishing up my practicum in elementary education I saw a couple storytellers put on a presentation and that was the first time in my life I ever felt like I was witnessing something that I absolutely should be doing. Of course, I ended up doing other things for my livelihood either out of obligation or convenience. But, it’s storytelling I feel is a much better fit for me.

About 10 or 12 years ago I started into a new career pursuit and gave it a go but then I put it on the back burner out of financial obligations.

The person who influenced the most in the storytelling world is Sue Hinkel. If it weren’t for her I never would have really explored it very much. I still haven’t fulfilled my potential however what I have done so far is largely due to her prodding. She’s the best cheerleader anyone could ever want to have in storytelling.

I don’t know if I have a favorite holiday but it would probably be Christmas. and if I had to choose where to go on vacation it would always be the mountains of Colorado.

My favorite kinds of stories are southern tall tales and nonsense stories. I hold a special place in my heart for irreverent stories told by puppets, of all things!

P.S. Lee was one of out featured tellers for Mo-Tell’s 2021 Tellabration. (Ironically, Sue

Hinkel was featured that night too!)