Griot stories have changed me!
I knew just a little about this story. "A Great Grand-Father of ours was sold at 13 and made to walk to another state." I must have heard that story all my life, told matter of factly, this is what happened.
Then playing Griot I put these four prompts together . I am an Ancestor born 100 years before me, My parent was so proud, I'd never seen land like that, and I could eat all... I had to think for a moment how could I combine those different prompts into a single connected story. I did, it continues to be my Griot story that has changed me the most.
Here are the basics of that very personal story. Telling the story, I am my Ancestor. In the story I am the young man who was totally heart broken but stood chest out tall, looking dry eyed at his also sad father. The father was proud of his son's composure, they both knew they would never meet again. The son walked and walked, fascinated, he had never seen land like that. Years later he is on his own land and could eat all the food from his garden that he wanted.
The telling of this story, expanding the little piece of story I had always known, into a felt story made my Fore-Father a real human being with feelings, not just a distant person in an elders story.
Griot, this non competitive story 'game' is meant to bring family and friends closer through shared stories.