There’s a quiet thrill in discovering stories nestled in the everyday.

As I wander across the modest footbridge, pausing to admire the urban stream winding gently beneath, I find myself on the path to the quaint Knightsbridge Girl Guide Hall. Today, it plays host to an event on the History Festival of South Australia agenda, themed around storytelling and decision-making.

There’s a tinge of excitement in the air.

Storytelling began as an oral tradition long before the invention of writing. Early humans gathered around fires, not Girl Guide Halls, sharing their stories to explain natural phenomena, teach survival skills, preserve cultural knowledge, and strengthen social bonds. These stories were often told through spoken word, music, dance, and visual art, such as cave paintings; like those found in the Chauvet cave in France, dating back 36,000 years, which are believed to depict real events.

Of course, oral storytelling was also central in ancient societies worldwide, including our own Aboriginal Australians using rock art, geography, and oral narratives which have now passed down through their generations for thousands and thousands of years.

We open the door. It begins.

The scene unfolds like many community gatherings: familiar faces, warm smiles, and a welcome at the door. Names are ticked off the list, and the afternoon tea of sponge cake, sandwiches and Japanese treats, is offered without fuss.

Conversations spark easily, with casual chatter and friendly introductions filling the room. Then, the bell rings. We take our seats, ready to be transported into the distinct worlds of each storyteller.

From the journey of £20 Poms forging new lives in Australia (north east of Adelaide to be exact), to the visual charm of a Japanese Kamishibai story board, and the adventures of Bob the Railway Dog during the golden age of the tracks, each tale offered us some drama, much humour, and various insights into the decisions that shape our lives. Recounting the panic of a shipwreck or the diplomacy of impressing the in-laws with a home-cooked feast, with each story, a thread of talent and humanity with humility was revealed.

One by one, their voices rose, their stories unfolded, and the room was spellbound.

The decision to spend the afternoon in good company was well worth it. -Charlie

Thank you, Storytelling Australia (SA)

Thank you, MC Maggie, for your welcome.

References
https://corinnefenton.com/book/bob-the-railway-dog

Kamishibai (紙芝居, means “paper play” or “paper drama”) is a traditional Japanese form of street theatre and storytelling using illustrated boards.