Storytelling

Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, often with improvisation, theatrics, or embellishment. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and instilling moral values.

This according to Wikipedia is the definition of storytelling. I'd have to add that it is also a means of preserving memories. At some point, these stories should be written down for our future generations.

I've recently read a post on my sister's blog, Lowtide, that talked about the retelling of stories. My daughter is a master at telling family stories. More often it is the situation of someone saying, "tell them what happened" or "remember when...". Those times soon become the family stories that are retold time and again when we "gather". 

So to borrow from my sister's blog, the following is one of our family's favorite stories. If you read my previous blog about my passion for china you will understand my aunt's passion as well. As a matter of fact, I  may have mentioned this story in that previous post. So here goes....

My mother's family is from a small pottery town in northern Ohio. My grandfather and a large percentage of the residents made their living working at the pottery. The pottery eventually closed but thousands of pieces of Royal China are still circulating in homes and restaurants.

When my aunt travels, she always checks the china to see if it was made in Sebring. As the story is told, my aunt, uncle, and their youngest daughter were dining in a nice restaurant when my aunt started checking china. Without thinking, she lifted the small creamer and turned it over to read the imprint on the bottom. It was full of cream which spilled all over the table. Uncle Dave's and Michele's jaws dropped in surprise, which made the gaffe all the funnier to my aunt! I love listening to Aunt Peggy retell this story.

Sometimes the telling of one story leads to another story. Such is the case with one of my favorite stories Grandad told about his friend Kenny.

My sister and I traveled to Sebring, Ohio on one of our road trips to visit our Grandparents. Grandad was a storyteller who could keep your attention, even as a young child. He also loved to sing and knew more folk songs and jingles than anyone I know. There would be no doubt that we would be treated to stories and singing with a visit to Grandad's house. Sitting around the kitchen table one evening, after serving him some of the vegetable soup my aunt and mom had put up in their freezer, he begins to tell us a story about his friend, Kenny. He and Kenny had been out to the local Diner once upon a time and had ordered chili. Kenny thought that he had bitten down on a piece of bone. When he spit it out he found it was his tooth! He wrapped it in a napkin to show his dentist the next day. The next time Grandad saw Kenny he inquired about his tooth. As related by Kenny, apparently after going to the dentist he was told that he was not missing any teeth! CRIPES, to use one of Grandad's favorite exclamations! Grandad ends his tale by saying, "we never ordered the chili after that". I took that to mean that they still ate at the local Diner, just not the chili!

Back home again, I begin to retell Grandad's story to my husband and two sons. I need to mention that I am NOT the best storyteller in the family. When Grandad told the story he mentioned Kenny by his first and last name which, by that time, I had forgotten his last name. I paused when retelling the story, saying "Kenny, uh, Kenny, um... I don't remember his last name". Immediately my story is interrupted by my husband who is making suggestions for the last name.... Loggins, Rogers. My oldest son has a puzzled look on his face since he has never heard of Kenny Loggins or Kenny Rogers. The husband explains who they are. Younger witty son suggests that maybe his last name was Bunkport. My husband and I are laughing at this as our oldest son has that same puzzled look. We laughed, even more, when he asked, "Who is Kenny Bunkport?". The younger witty son never cracks a smile! After composing myself I did finish telling Grandad's story. An interesting note is that the new tale of someone named Kenny Bunkport now overshadows the tale of a lost tooth. I don't recall our sons' reactions when they found out that Kenny never lost his tooth! However, when the town of Kennebunkport, Maine is mentioned we lapse into that familiar, "remember when" conversation, and the story is retold much to our amusement.  

By the way, I think it might have been Anderson.

Until next time, keep sharing those family stories and memories.  

Catching Up With Catching Fish

It has been some time since I posted anything. Nearly six months, I suppose. The last entry was our family vacation to Grand Tetons and Yellowstone in July 2016. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years have come and gone since then. I guess I do have some catching up to do. My blog, for the most part, has been a journal for me no different than the diary my mother or grandmother might have kept in their day.  

Emma, our only granddaughter, is now three and keeps us entertained and amused. A quick trip to Florida for her birthday in January. Our grandsons, Jackson and Logan, are 11 and 8 and soon to be 12 and 9. Where does the time go? We have enjoyed a few of their basketball games and family time at Christmas. 

So to catch up since last July I will start with our trip to Colorado in October. While travel is a favorite of mine, fishing is not. Fly fishing would be a favorite of my husband and youngest son, Scott. So I'm catching up with a post about their passion for catching fish. One of their favorite things! It is truly a sport for them as they catch and release most of the time. I can not remember the last time someone brought fish home for me to cook. The two of them had talked before about fishing for salmon when they start to "run" upstream from the reservoir near Gunnison, CO. Swimming back to the fish hatchery where they were spawned near the quaint town of Crested Butte, CO happens every August through October. Often these impromptu plans are some the most memorable. So we flew into Denver and traveled to Crested Butte for a weekend of fishing for the guys and sightseeing in town for the girls. Dinner out in the evening and back to the condo for a challenging game of dominos. We drove out in two vehicles so the guys would have transportation to the river to fish without leaving the girls stranded in a condo for the day. Great plan! Our return trip to the Denver area afforded me the opportunity for that travel and photography that I love! Before leaving Crested Butte, however, my husband gave me a personal tour of the fish hatchery and a hike to the river where they had been fishing for the previous two days.


 On the hike to the river, we met two young brothers fishing with their father.


They reminded me of our grandsons since they were about the same ages. 

Some information below about the type of salmon and the Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery that I found online. Definitely worth another trip, another day!

Kokanee are a land-locked form of sockeye salmon. Each April 2-inch Kokanee fry (or fingerlings) are released from the Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery into the East River. Their overnight journey takes them down the East and Taylor rivers to the Gunnison River and into Blue Mesa Reservoir and other waters, where they typically spend three to four years maturing. In late August, the salmon begin their trek back to the hatchery and the run usually lasts through October.

 

 The nets above guide the salmon into smaller channels and into pools that connect to the hatchery. 
The Hatchery was purchased by the Division of Wildlife in 1963. In 1966 when they started raising trout eggs the Gunnison school children gave it the name "Roaring Judy". It will take a little more research to find out where they came up with the name.

 Division of Wildlife personnel spawn the salmon at the hatchery, taking 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 eggs per year. These eggs are put into the Hatchery through the winter with regulated water running over them. In the spring they are put into the outdoor holding tanks until they become about 2-inches long and are then returned to the river waters or trucked to the other reservoirs.

In conclusion, our weekend trip to Colorado provided something for everyone. And, of course, my favorite thing of all is enjoying time with family. News earlier today of a friend's passing shines a light on the realization that these times are to be treasured and every opportunity to gather with loved ones should not be put off for another day.

 
Until next time there are more memories to be made.