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There's More to the Story

"If you liked the movie, you should have read the book." How many times have you heard this, and yet most people never read the book?

It's easy to push a button, sit back, and have drama played out in front of us. In a movie the story is often bigger than life, and more thrilling and intense every year. After that, reading a book can seem droll and like a lot of work. It takes time, making your mind focus, and using your imagination and experience to paint the pictures of the story. Yet, if the book is almost always better, maybe there is something in the art of sharing stories that is being lost today.

Story sharing is as old as time itself. All centuries, continents or cultures have experienced it. Many of the great philosophers taught through stories. Troubadours sang stories during the middle ages. Religious stories have been preserved over thousands of years, and Chinese wisdom as proverbs is often still passed on in story form.

Wherever people have gathered, there has been story telling. This was a main event at Mountain Man Rendezvous. Storytelling has preserved history, tradition, values, and language. The themes of basic stories over time have been a measure of the basic needs and desires of the people who created them and those who retold them later on.

With our new electronic gadgets, communication in our day is becoming lost to half sentences, incomplete thoughts, and a quick message. We keep track of each other through email or even on cell phones, but a lot is lost when eye contact, gestures, and even a soft touch are not present.

Today's communication is full of misunderstandings, unintended offense, and feelings that are suppressed because they are never validated. There is a mass epidemic of people trying to be everything and feeling like they are not enough. There is little real interaction with others unless you need something from them because we are so caught up in "the action" and our own wants and needs. More and more, people feel alone, unhappy or unfulfilled. True relationship skills are at an all time low.

Maybe in a day where we seem to have everything, we lack some of the things we need the most to make life mean something. Maybe there is still a place for some of the "old fashioned" simple things that worked for past generations.

Could spending time together while sharing simple stories and activities be a key ingredient missing in our lives? Can we expand our own minds by sharing ideas, imagination, and feelings? Could that even help validate us as individuals and people? The answer to all of these questions is yes.

More and more people are seeking things that allow them to get in touch with feelings, but Cheri Maude, the creator of Ginger Brook Hollow™, believes we can often do that by getting in touch with other people. She feels that there are a lot of ways for people to interact, but in a society starved for interaction the art is being lost. Cheri says that developing Ginger Brook Hollow was her way of offering some tools that allow people to share with each other in a non-threatening way.

What is Ginger Brook Hollow and how can it help build relationships? Ginger Brook Hollow is a company that specializes in stories and dolls from those stories. "I did not focus on a lot of clothing or accessories for the dolls because then the focus is back on things rather than people, interaction or the stories." Cheri explains.

"My objective was not just to sell things, but to create ways to help people interact and have something to share. The stories are short or in parts with a lot of fine art illustration so that they can be read and enjoyed together rather than separately. I realize that people are busy, so I have focused on putting the story in 'bite sized pieces' that can be read in 20 minutes or less. That way, people are more inclined to read out loud to each other and share," Cheri added.

Hearing another person's voice is sometimes almost as important in getting close to the person as the words they speak. If everybody knows the story, they can share the places, experiences, and characters.

Cheri also feels that dolls are an excellent way to interact. "Adults share their own creativity in the form of stories, photography, and sewing or other crafts when they have dolls as something to express ideas, experiences and sharing. Children will often act out thoughts and feelings they are experiencing when they can do so through dolls."

Sometimes children just feel a need to nurture or find companionship. To use a doll takes some of the risk away from us as people and can open up interaction with others. Often it is easier to seek acceptance if we can be slightly removed in a situation by using a doll. Objects that we share with others also invoke memories of the time shared. For this reason, Cheri chose to make the dolls beautiful, and with articulation so that they could be collectable keepsakes as well as useable and shareable.

Cheri feels there are many ways and tools for interacting with other people. However, the important thing is to find a way that works for you to talk to and share stories of your own with others. For those who are looking for something like Ginger Brook Hollow, we invite you to take a few moments to step from the stresses of your every day life into a cozy world all of its own. Discover the small, protected valley between high rolling hills and share in the lives of the people who live there. Then use your creativity to enjoy what you find. Becoming a part of Ginger Brook Hollow does not require buying collectable vinyl dolls. It can be as simple as sharing a story, a recipe, or helping a child cut out and play with the characters as paper dolls. Whatever it is that helps you to build relationships and memories will make both your life and the life of others fuller.

(About the author: Cheri Maude has developed a line of collectible dolls and books of orphans girls who reside in a place called Ginger Brook Hollow. The setting is in the Victorian Era and Cheri has found adults sharing stories and teaching young children what they did when they grew up provides a wonderful learning experience and relationship. To see the dolls and other items, visit www.gingerbrookhollow.com)

judythpiazza@gmail.com