Small Stories about Big Things is a weekly newsletter all about the big stuff of life - delivered by way of the small, ordinary, and imperfect stories unfolding all around us.
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(audio version of today’ s story)
“We were riding in a truck toward some fairly thick brush, and we saw a group of men start running in our directions with machetes,” she explained.
The woman speaking was sharing with a local Rotary Club about her non-profit work which brings clean water to communities in rural portions of Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania. Actually, the formal portion of her talk had finished at this point.
During the Q&A she made an off-hand comment about having “a lot of stories” from her decade of leadership in this work. In most settings it would have been her final words before the closing applause.
This time, however, a Rotarian responded to her ‘lot of stories’ comment with an immediate invitation: “Tell us one!”
It was earnest, and she received it as such and began telling the truck-and-machete story.
“As they neared our truck,” she continued, “I thought to myself, oh no. Not a hostage situation… We have to get out of here.”
The room became notably tense.
“But then all the men ran right by us and began using the machetes to clear the brush in front of our truck.”
A collective exhale.
“They were racing ahead,” she continued, “because they knew the brush was so thick our truck would not get through. And they wanted to ensure I would not have to walk through the brush.”
(Photo by Harsh Jadav on Unsplash)
It was a great story - and as moving and meaningful as her entire presentation was - that story is what stuck.
I heard the depth of her honest fear. And in her naming real fear, she let the rest of us go within and feel more honestly the unstated fears we often carry:
Is the unfamiliar person or people or technology coming for me?I heard the humble delight that she had read the machetes all wrong. And in naming the surprise of goodness rising from the place she had understood as the threat, she named a hope that lies near-dormant for many today:
Is it possible that (m)any among the unfamiliar or strange or Other Side would actively seek my well-being?I heard an unrehearsed human story that didn’t fit with any of her formal slides, data, or practical tips, and it made me wonder quite a few things:
Could it be that…
…stepping out upon wholly new terrain can work?
…the generosity of strangers can pave the way?
…the most memorable and meaningful stories of our lives will arrive not in the planned, calculated and highly trained arenas of our life… but in the moments of terrifying dependence, improv, and grace?
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The woman came to talk about getting clean water to people on the other side of the world.
I don’t know that she had planned to deliver fresh water to the Rotary Club of Austin - but that also happened.
Because good stories are machetes cutting with quick precision through the layers of protective brush we place around the heart.
Good stories are also running water racing straight into our deepest hopes and fears.
(Photo by Jaël Vallée on Unsplash)
And when we can feel the fullness of those hopes and fears in a space with others, there is a kind of corporate catharsis. A healing even.
Plus there’s all the new questions that arise. And while the mind loves answers, the heart grows through questions.
Want to join in delivering some fresh water to parched lands?
Stories, meet the American heart.
In our ever-efficient, busy, and drought-laden society… what would it look like to sit across from another…
over coffee
or at a conference
or in the living room
or on the front porch
or at bedtime
or…
…and invite forth a story?
Tell us one.
What got you into that?
How did you get there?
What happened next?
How did that begin?1
(Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash)
If you’ve got a little longer, go with a favorite prompt from my friend, Justin Foster:
Think of your life as a screenplay for a movie - what are three scenes that must be in the movie for the audience to get an understanding of you?
All of us are one earnest question away from tapping the Water Source of one another.
A SPECIAL NOTE: Starting this Sunday, subscribers to Small Stories about Big Things will begin receiving an extra-dose of inspiration to begin the week! Each Sunday evening I will be sending a brief email called Sunday Evening Sofa (a subset of the Small Stories about Big Things newsletter - not a separate newsletter).
Below is the gist. I look forward to sharing this with you!
Sunday Evening.
When the weekly to-dos and anxieties are piling high before Monday has even arrived… can we find one last chance to settle the soul differently?
In each edition of Sunday Evening Sofa you will receive an insightful or motivational quote (or two) and one question for reflection.
My hope?
Maybe you can lean back onto your Sunday evening sofa with…
a bit more encouragement,
a bit more calm,
and a helpful question or two sitting with your soul.
Click here for more on the gift of good questions.
Am looking forward to Sunday Evenings. Your stories help me deal with what is going on in my life. They give me pause to look around me and enjoy what is there.
Nice to have the audio feature! Especially the narrators voice!