I recently have begun telling stories to my children. They are at the age where they can follow the details, understand the premise and know which parts are funny and all that, to a relatively nuanced degree.
This has a tremendous amount of mutual benefit.
I love the chance to work out my storytelling abilities and watch their little eyes light up when I get to the climax. They cackle their little heads off if I tell it well. They find the stories hilarious and always want to know if they are true.
They also get to know me a lot deeper. They form a deeper understanding of who their dad is, and the kinds of stories that formed my experiences growing up. They also gain a deeper appreciation for the characters in the stories, mainly my mom, dad and brother.
A few of these I’ve shared publicly in speeches in front of professionals or at the university, but maybe I’ll start adding more to my repertoire.
KR