She Persisted

As I waited for the show to begin, I felt the familiar nervousness, this time accentuated by the fact that I would host the show, a new role for me. I was excited, but anxious. I had even prepared notes for myself as host, so that I wouldn’t forget anything important. Not that long ago I would have laughed had anyone suggested I would host a show of storytellers, much less get on stage and share some of my most vulnerable stories. I was too afraid to be open, bold, and fearless. I didn’t acknowledge my own strength. I didn’t recognize my own gifts of storytelling and empowering others in telling their stories.

I recently wrote about Female Storytellers (FST!), a wonderful monthly show in which women share personal stories related to a selected theme. If you have not had a chance to attend and live in Tucson, you’re missing out. This month’s theme was “She Persisted,” appropriate one year after the black day on which a sizable portion of this country’s citizens voted for a misogynistic, abusive, manipulative man who has demonstrated repeatedly since then that he is uniquely unqualified to represent or lead this diverse country.

Perhaps surprisingly, none of the stories in the show were explicitly about politics. But they were intense, each in its own way. I wish I could share them all with you, but they are not mine to share. I can say that they combined to make one of the most powerful shows that I have seen in my time attending and participating in FST!. I felt such honor to host the five other women with whom I shared the stage that evening. We have a bond that I cherish, and I look forward to seeing them all again. (I hope to hear all of them tell more stories as well!)

My own story was the most intensely personal of all that I have shared to date, even, in its own way, more so than my first story about coming into my true identity. Rather than talk about it in writing, I offer you, thanks to the fantastic FST! team, the opportunity to hear it for yourself. I hope you find it stirring and motivating, though it will speak to each one in a different way. I hope that, listening to it, you will be empowered to share your own stories, whether on stage in a public storytelling show like FST!, or simply to your friends, families and communities. We all have stories to share. Our stories have value, especially those of us whose voices have been silence for too long. I am so glad that I found the strength and courage to use my voice. I hope you will as well.

Namaste