Interplay Helps Seminar Participants Craft and Share Their Stories

Cynthia Winton-Henry is an accomplished author and former Adjunct Faculty member at the Pacific School of Religion. She’s also the co-founder of the Interplay Practice – a series of classes, seminars and events designed to help groups and individuals express creativity – primarily through play and other forms of artistic expression.

I learned about Cynthia because she created a VoiceQuilt called the “Sacred Stories Project” last fall. We were intrigued by the VoiceQuilt name as well as the instructions posted on Facebook.

“…How do we listen to the mundane or magical moments that have increased, challenged or inspired our ability to love! That’s what I call sacred!”

When I spoke with Cynthia last week, she shared that seminar participants learn how to craft brief but deeply meaningful stories from their lives.  One exercise she uses is ”’3 sentence stories”.  She asks participants to share anything from the mundane to the powerful, asking them ” to turn attention to moments that move, encourage or surprise them”.

Example: ”I went to Minnesota to teach this weekend. The weather was mild and people didn’t know whether to be happy or worried that there was no snow on the ground. I guess I bought those snow boots for some other trip!”

According to Cynthia, the structure is as follows: “ The first sentence gets you going. The next one fills in a little more detail. The last sentence is where you stop. No finale needed!”  During the seminar, participants usually find at least one “keeper story”.  They share it with the group.  They are also invited to record it on the Sacred Stories Project Voice Quilt.

Cynthia believes, “Many of these stories are asking to be told to the larger community. Over time, these stories develop into a body of wisdom that should be shared.”

We are proud of Cynthia’s work and delighted to help with her storytelling efforts. Need a creative break?  Check out the voice message story titled “God’s Breath” here or Interplay’s Facebook page here.