My youth spent in the South was filled with weekend trips to Tennessee. Through my wanderings of the hallowed grounds of
Civil War battlefields and foot tapping to the old-time music at the
Grand Ole Opry, a Utah girl quickly became a Southern girl. It's been exactly five years since I was last in Tennessee... my words fail to describe the joy of going home again.
The
National Storytelling Festival was absolutely phenomenal. Better than any Broadway play, stand-up comic, music festival or concert I've ever been to. Yes, I've been to
a lot and I
know what I'm talking about. There's a stigma that lingers over the word "storytelling." Some people think it's only for small children- you know, the stuffy library setting and a "special rug." Others might think it's only boring, repetitive folktales read from a book and almost impossible to relate to. This could not be further from the truth.
I saw
Antonio Rocha being lifted off the ground by an invisible balloon, was taken back to Alabama in the 1920's by
Kathryn Tucker Windham, laughed out loud when
Bil Lepp had me convinced that he washed windows on homemade slits, felt empathy beyond imagination when
Kevin Kling recalled his first taste of fresh fruit after hospitalization, smiled wide when
Elizabeth Ellis described the luxury of fried squirrel, shivered as
Minton Sparks let me into her world of an abused mother in the dusty slums, marveled at the gruff poetic skills of Nevada cowboy
Waddie Mitchell, and reflected on my own childhood mishaps and misbehavin' as I listened to
Donald Davis.
Needless to say, I had a wonderful trip. "Storytelling introduces into the measured pace of our lives opportunities to gallop." -Bob Barton
My youth spent in the South was filled with weekend trips to Tennessee. Through my wanderings of the hallowed grounds of Civil War battlefields and foot tapping to the old-time music at the Grand Ole Opry, a Utah girl quickly became a Southern girl. It's been exactly five years since I was last in Tennessee... my words fail to describe the joy of going home again.
The National Storytelling Festival was absolutely phenomenal. Better than any Broadway play, stand-up comic, music festival or concert I've ever been to. Yes, I've been to a lot and I know what I'm talking about. There's a stigma that lingers over the word "storytelling." Some people think it's only for small children- you know, the stuffy library setting and a "special rug." Others might think it's only boring, repetitive folktales read from a book and almost impossible to relate to. This could not be further from the truth.
I saw Antonio Rocha being lifted off the ground by an invisible balloon, was taken back to Alabama in the 1920's by Kathryn Tucker Windham, laughed out loud when Bil Lepp had me convinced that he washed windows on homemade slits, felt empathy beyond imagination when Kevin Kling recalled his first taste of fresh fruit after hospitalization, smiled wide when Elizabeth Ellis described the luxury of fried squirrel, shivered as Minton Sparks let me into her world of an abused mother in the dusty slums, marveled at the gruff poetic skills of Nevada cowboy Waddie Mitchell, and reflected on my own childhood mishaps and misbehavin' as I listened to Donald Davis.
Needless to say, I had a wonderful trip. "Storytelling introduces into the measured pace of our lives opportunities to gallop." -Bob Barton
2 comments:
Yes - Ma
That sounds (well, reads) like a fantastic trip. I passed through TN when I was 18. I went to Nashville, then south through AL to the coast and over to Biloxi, MS, on a greyhound bus. Took the bus all the way from SLC to Biloxi and back, in fact. While Cliff and the rest of my high school classmates were walking across the stage wearing their graduation garb and accepting diplomas, I was sharing whiskey with a street musician on broadway in Nashville, waiting for the next bus to Mobile.
I love The South, especially MS. My time riding south to north on a bus through MS, taught me more about racist issues (and the Delta Blues!!) than any class ever would have.
oh, in case you're wondering, I was able to travel from here to there with a sidetrip up hwy 61 using the Ameripass. It's basically the greyhound version of Europe's Eurail. You buy an amount of time rather than a destination. I had 28 days to take any bus I chose to any location it went. Great times. I'd like to do it again some time, but of course the mortgage makes it difficult.
And to answer your initial question, I'd love to get together with you and Cliff sometime. Like I said, I've always considered Cliff to be one of the best. It would be great to see him again...and, of course, to meet his wife. Cheers!
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