I AM SOMEBODY

raceb 02/01/2013 AFRICAN AMERICAN/AFRICANS, EDUCATION AND LIFE LESSONS, IDENTITY, Linda Gorham, Storytelling Collection, TAKING A STAND AND PEACEMAKING

video-of-the-month

I AM SOMEBODY

linda
A short story told by
professional storyteller
Linda Gorham

 

Reflecting on her family, storyteller Linda Gorham raises powerful images in celebration of her ancestors in “I Am Somebody.” Told in a relatable and interesting manner, Linda easily engages the listener with her words.

From a proud and determined father to a strong and devoted mother to a dedicated and intelligent grandfather, Linda shares bits of her life and family with listeners. As the story continues, it is clear that family has made her who she is. It is clear that family is most important to her.

As we celebrate Black History this month, Linda Gorham reminds us that the gifts of our own family and family tree evoke gratitude, whatever our ethnicity or identity.

Take time to reflect upon your own family and values. As Linda states in her telling, “We are all a product of those who came before us, and we are the preparation for the future.”

Linda Gorham is an engaging storyteller who regales listeners with poignant stories of her life. She believes that there are no limits to what people can achieve. Storytelling to adults and children alike, Linda is drawn to the power of story. She enjoys the creativity involved in her work, and thrives on the challenge of storytelling.

 

Take a moment to be touched by this beautiful tribute to family:
.

.
I Am Somebody

 

Be moved by some of the other storytellers in our free line-up on our Showcase Page.

Plastic Glory

raceb 10/15/2012 African American, AFRICAN AMERICAN/AFRICANS, FAMILY AND CHILDHOOD, Linda Gorham, LIVING AND TRAVELING ABROAD, Storytelling Collection, WAR

 

Story Summary:

 Linda’s grandmother lived in what her sisters and she called “The Plastic Palace.” Her grandmother covered everything with plastic. Everything … chairs, tables, lampshades … and, of course, her living room couch, including the throw pillows. Plastic is fun, right? But who would suspect that it could also set off a painful memory of the Vietnam War for Linda’s father?

 

Discussion Questions:

  1.  What intrigues you about the home of your grandparents or other older people? What do you smell, taste, hear, or touch when you visit their homes?
  2. How does the description of food add to the visual image of the dining room scene?
  3. Were you surprised at the twist near the end of the story? How did her father’s reaction to the popping sound affect you?
  4. Do you know someone who has fought overseas in a war? Have you ever talked with them about their experiences? If you could, what would you ask?
  5. The term ‘shell shock’ has been changed to ‘post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). What do you know about it?

 

Resources:

  • The Things They Cannot Say: Stories Soldiers Won’t Tell You about What They’ve Seen, Done or Failed to Do in War by Kevin Sites
  •  Once a Warrior–Always a Warrior: Navigating the Transition from Combat to Home–Including Combat Stress, PTSD, and MTBI by Charles Hoge
  • What It Is Like To Go To War by Karl Marlantes

 

Themes:

  •  African American/Black History
  • Family and Childhood
  • Living and Traveling Abroad
  • War

The Book

raceb 10/15/2012 AFRICAN AMERICAN/AFRICANS, EDUCATION AND LIFE LESSONS, FAMILY AND CHILDHOOD, Linda Gorham, Storytelling Collection

 

Story Summary:

 Linda’s father had a little black book. He said it was written just for her and he said it was full of all the values she needed for a successful life. Linda loved it. She believed in it. But it took time to understand just what a gift it was.

 

Discussion Questions:

  1.  Do your parents or caregivers have ‘words of wisdom’ they repeat all the time? What are they? What do they mean?
  2. Do you have favorite sayings? What makes them important?
  3. Linda’s father told her he had plans and dreams for her. What are your plans? Your dreams?
  4. Why is it important for adults to encourage young people?

 

Resources:

  •  Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama
  • The Arms That Are Needed: Daughters Reflect on Fatherly Love by Landra Glover
  • If: A Father’s Advice to His Son by Rudyard Kipling

 

Themes:

  •  African American/Black History
  • Education and Life Lessons
  • Family and Childhood

ROSA

raceb 06/17/2010 African American, AFRICAN AMERICAN/AFRICANS, CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, Linda Gorham, STEREOTYPES AND DISCRIMINATION, Storytelling Collection, TAKING A STAND AND PEACEMAKING

By Storyteller Linda Gorham

(Please be patient as the video may take a few moments to load.)

Story Summary:

 Rosa Parks is best known for her refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a

Montgomery, Alabama bus in 1955. Her action galvanized the growing Civil Rights

Movement and led to the successful Montgomery bus boycott. But even before her

defiant act and the resulting boycott, Ms. Parks was dedicated to racial justice and

equality. Linda Gorham tells the story of those times through the eyes of three people: Claudette Colvin (a 15-year-old who refused to give up her seat nine months before Rosa Parks), James Blake (the bus driver), and Rosa Parks herself.

 

Discussion Questions:

  1.  Given the climate of violence Rosa Parks faced, would you have had the courage to do what she and the other people of the Civil Rights Movement did? Have you ever stood up for something you believe in? What happened?
  2. Would you have been one of the people involved in the Civil Rights movement? How would you have helped?
  3. Many Whites thought things were unfair in this country and supported the Civil Rights Movement yet were afraid to say so to their own spouses, families or neighbors. When have you felt afraid to share your beliefs?

 

Resources:

  • Film – Mighty Times: The Legacy of Rosa Parks by Hudson & Houston produced by
  • Teaching Tolerance and Tell the Truth Pictures.
  • Rosa Parks: My Story by Rosa Parks and Jim Haskins. In this straightforward, compelling autobiography, Rosa Parks talks candidly about the civil rights movement and her active role in it.
  • Rosa Parks: A Life by Douglas Brinkley. Historian Douglas Brinkley follows this thoughtful and devout woman from her childhood in Jim Crow Alabama through her early involvement in the NAACP to her epochal moment of courage and her afterlife as a beloved (and resented) icon of the civil rights movement.

 

Themes:

  •  African American/Black History
  • Civil Rights Movement
  • Stereotypes and Discrimination
  • Taking A Stand and Peacemaking