Simple Pleasures #2: "So tell me a little about yourself..."

Time to share another little piece of our culture that speaks to my heart. This round's simple pleasure comes in the form of a weekly radio installment featured Friday mornings on NPR (KERA 90.1 here in DFW).

I'll paint a quick picture for you: I'm in the car (a green, '99 Ford Escort ZX2- NOT as sporty as it sounds, but still a lovable auto) on my way to work. The sun is usually just above the horizon, and I hear either Steve Inskeep or Renee Montaigne (sp? sorry, Renee) cue me with some pleasant acoustic guitar strumming tucked audibly below that it's time for:

Story-Corps

It's a project that has set out to span the nation giving everyday folks like you and I a chance to sit in front of a mic and simply recount a story from their life. That's it. Oh, yeah and all the recordings they've done are later archived in the Library of Congress...very neat.

Since it's only once a week, you know they've picked a good one. They are rarely stranger than fiction or incredible, but they are always real. Some leave me laughing, some fighting tears, some just feeling pensive. Or sentimental. Or a little of all the above. They are always real. Real stories from real people. Not really rehearsed, except for the times they've been shared before over coffee, in the break room, or at the bus stop.

I'm not able to articulate much that defines the postmodern worldview that we Westerners are currently enmeshed in, but I do know one of the hallmarks of it is the value placed on experience, and narrative/story. We care a great deal about what others have been through when we evaluate what they may be saying to us. All this to say, this uber-simple radio spot each week, at least for me, hits a sweet spot somewhere inside of me. I feel connected, and appreciative that there are otherwise unremarkable people like me that find significance in the personal events that have shaped their lives.

Not sure if this is finding coherence- let me know if you're picking up what I'm putting down, will ya?

Story-corps is on NPR, Friday mornings usually sometime between 7:00 and 7:45am...

PS- last week's story has inspired me to pursue a writing project: I'm hoping to write out some short-essays on the various jobs I've worked, especially those first ones as a teenager and into college. You know, the random ones. The hope is to dig into the things I learned through them, and the people I met along the way...you won't want to miss the one where I talk about my stint as a carpet salesman. (and yes, that job was every bit as sexy as you are imagining)