The Power of a Story

This is my 100th post. No pressure, right? It's a weird anniversary, since it isn't a date-associated one, but rather, content-associated. I had a few ideas about what to write about for this post, but a photo I saw while at work yesterday immediately stood out and superseded them all. This is the picture, along with the cutline (newspaper-speak for caption).

An Indian laborer pulls a cart heavily loaded with goods while others
assist him as they make their way through a crowded street in the old
city area of New Delhi, India, on Aug. 21, 2014. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

It was a "Daily Life" photo, I believe, which means it isn't attached to any particular news item. It is just meant to show how people around the world live. I have no idea what you see when you see this picture. When I saw it, I was reminded immediately of The Elephant: The Life of a Coolie by Aravind Adiga, a story that appeared in The New Yorker. That story made this photo come alive for me. Far more than just an image, this is a visual representation of all the sensations and emotions described in Adiga's story.

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but if a picture is supported by a story, the picture is given added power.

Robin Williams' daughter tweeted a quote from The Little Prince following his death:

This is the Little Prince talking, and he is in turn reminding us of a lesson a fox taught him. The fox says that even though the Little Prince is leaving him, their friendship was worth it because now when the fox looks at fields of wheat, the color will remind him of the Little Prince's hair. This adds meaning to the wheat fields. They are no longer simply fields of wheat (which a fox can't eat); they are a symbol of the Little Prince. In this quote, the Little Prince is telling the narrator that he is leaving to live in the stars again, but their friendship was worth it because now the narrator can look up into the stars and remember the Prince; the stars now mean something.

Time spent with stories can help build meaning into the lives we live. I did not have any association with a man in India pulling a cart, but after reading one short story, I connect with that picture. It becomes more than a picture to me.

So read often. The world around you will increase in depth, and the people with whom you associate will become more. Reading builds empathy, because a well-told story allows us to look at the world through another person's eyes. You will then understand the world better, because understanding only comes through having similar experiences. A library can be like a shoe store in that reading allows you to walk in someone else's shoes.

And if you are a parent, please oh please nurture a love for reading in your child. It's important for more than literacy; reading will help them grow into a knowledgeable, caring adult. And besides that, a visit to the library provides free (and quiet) entertainment. Everyone loves stories; they just have to find the right ones for them.

Oh, and did you notice that Robin Williams' daughter reached to a story for comfort? What is around us adds meaning to what we read. That's why we can return to the same stories over and over again and experience something new each time. Our understanding of the world has changed; this, in turn, has changed the story itself.