Some holiday traditions endure, even when so much else is different this year.
The Arizona Daily Star, in partnership with the Arizona Lottery, will present its third annual holiday storytelling event on Wednesday, Dec. 16. The newsroom promises entertaining, funny, and touchingly heartfelt stories.
But the stories are not appropriate for children who still believe in the magic of Christmas.
This year’s event will be held virtually and will air 7 p.m. at events.storytellersproject.com and those who register in advance will get a reminder.
In a season when so many traditions are impossible, when we can’t be with so many of the people we love, the Tucson Storytellers Project — and the USA Today Network journalists who power it — are offering the community a place to come together safely — in their own homes, said show emcee and project founder Megan Finnerty.
Daily Star Editor-in-Chief Jill Jorden Spitz will be among the storytellers. She will share a story about her son, the magic of Santa Claus and hard truths we learn growing up.
“My story is about my journey helping a very literal thinker understand that Christmas magic lives in the heart, not in the brain,” she said.
Jorden Spitz will be joined by the following fellow Tucson residents:
Cat Belue, 58, self-employed;
Adiba Nelson, 43, an author and disability rights advocate;
Molly McCloy, a writer, educator and Moth StorySLAMS winner;
Lou Davis, a veteran.
“My story addresses yearning and disappointment — a crucial backdrop to where we find ourselves in 2020,” said Belue. “But it also speaks to family and the bonds that shape us from youth.
“My hope is that the listener finds humor in a difficult time and that through that common denominator we find our own humanity and that of our fellow humans.”
Like Belue, Nelson had the pandemic, political unrest and other challenges of 2020 on her mind when she agreed to participate and hopes that the show will offer an opportunity to come together in a safe way.
“I think people should attend the show because somewhere along the way, between wildfires and knees on necks, riots and so-called rigged elections, we’ve forgotten that we are a community, first and foremost,” she said. “We need to get back to that togetherness — in as safe a way as possible.”
Her story will be about Christmases gone awry, and how bittersweet and sentimental the holidays are today now that she is a parent.
“I hope people can find beauty when cycles repeat themselves — and remember that, as parents, we are all just doing our best,” she said.
McCloy, who told at a holiday show as part of the Arizona Storytellers Project in Phoenix, hopes to convey through her story that idealized holidays are flawed, and acceptance of family is a complicated process.
Davis has a story about overcoming loneliness and alienation through the power of friendship.
The Storytellers Project, part of the USA TODAY Network, produces shows in 20 cities across the United States, but pivoted to virtual shows in April because of the pandemic.
Virtual shows are planned through the end of 2021 featuring a diverse makeup of storytellers sharing true stories based on their personal lives. Tellers work with storytelling coaches and journalists from across the USA TODAY Network.
Learn more and apply to tell a story at storytellersproject.com/about
