Capture the Light and Let it Shine
As a child, I have always been fascinated by listening to stories and learning about other people’s life experiences. Autobiographies, biographies, non-fiction, and historical fiction are my favorite genres because these stories allowed me to walk in the shoes of someone who has already journeyed through life on earth. I vividly remember a few books that changed my life through the power of storytelling:
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Dr. Maya Angelou
- Roots by Alex Haley
- Night by Elie Wiesel
- Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs
In each of these extraordinary stories, I was given a first-hand account of their life experiences. They wrote their stories in a manner in which they talked and used such great diction and detailed imagery that physically moved me by their experiences.
- I could smell the scent of Maya Angelou’s grandmother’s general store in Stamps, Arkansas.
- I could hear the songs sung by the slaves in Alex Haley’s Roots.
- I wept with Elie Wiesel at night when he was trying to survive the hunger and cold of the concentration camp.
- I was transformed into the little girl Harriet, as she shared her life as a slave girl in North Carolina.
These stories made me want to research more about life and human experience. These stories shaped my advocacy platform and spurred in me a passion to use all my know-how, education, and social capital to protect humanity through the sharing of stories. Storytelling allows others to see humanity in others and listen to their experiences to see the juxtaposition of sameness in humans trying to live a life in a world. This is the power of stories.
The Institute for Family wants to capture people’s life experiences, essence, culture, and truths to share with others who have authority and make decisions that can directly change the lives of North Carolinians: good, bad, or indifferent. We want to share the stories of our families across our state in their unique and authentic forms. North Carolinian’s stories matter. Our story threads have a unique tapestry of black soil, tar heels, Cheerwine, and deep family roots. The Institute for Family wants to shine a light on our stories and experiences to ensure our leaders hear our humanity, hear our traditions, hear what we love, and hear what we want to ensure remains for North Carolina’s posterity. The Institute for Family wants to capture the light and let it shine through our great state of North Carolina.
There are multiple ways you can share your stories with the Institute for Family through our website, Shine on North Carolina page. It takes about an hour, the length of a lunch period (hour) to record your story, and share your story in a variety of formats:
- Zoom session on the Institute for Family recording site with a storytelling partner (sign up for a session through this link)
- Zoom session on the Institute for Family recording site by yourself
- Face-to-face with storytelling facilitator and/or storytelling partner (sign up for a session through this link)
- Zoom with the storytelling facilitator and/or storytelling partner
Sign Up for a Recording Session Now!
Storytelling and story sharing changes lives. This is why I am so passionate about collecting and sharing the stories of North Carolinians. Each story is a thread, and when interwoven and connected, a tapestry of life and human experience is created. Stories are how humans build connections, develop empathy, and create understanding. Sharing and listening to other people’s stories allows us to share our culture, oral history, fears, failures, loves, and daily life. We can feel seen and heard through the feelings other people’s stories present. Imagine listening to a story about someone’s experience with grief while you are grieving. You can create a sense of peace through the collected shared experiences. Our tapestry is incomplete without your thread.
If you have any questions, reach out to our Education Manager, Tori Brasher-Weathers at information@instituteforfamily.org.