How Stories Came to Be
I heard this story told by Patrick the Storyteller from Sedona, Arizona
Focus:
- To bring awareness to The Story in all things
- To develop good relationships with spiders
- To develop a curiosity and desire to get to know the natural world
This is a pourquoi (por-kwa) tale. Pourquoi is French for “Why” and these tales are old legends told to explain why certain events happened. They often start with the past and end when all explanations are complete.
Personal Comments:
I use this pourquoi tale at the beginning of a storytelling session, at the beginning of a new school year or at the beginning of a new season. Any new beginning can be enhanced with the telling of this tale. It can lead you to discover the story that wishes to be heard, for all things have a story to tell.
Playing with the story:
- Whatever treasures you and the children find can lead to questions. “What is the story here? How did these leaves get so green? Did the fairies come and paint them in the early morning?” “NO!” a child might say. “They got green because…” Write down the children’s stories to read and reread together.
- When you are outdoors, invite the children to sit still, even if just for a moment. Ask if they can “hear” a story — in the wind, in the trees, in a bird singing. (I do this a lot, just settling down in a quiet place. After a time, one by one, the children come and sit by me. Soon we are all sitting there, being still. Always, some magical event takes place; a hawk flying directly above our heads, a snake slithering out of the bushes, a spider spinning its web. It is delightful to watch children suddenly see something that has been there, unnoticed, all along.)
- Find places where spiders live. Ask: How many spiders can you find? What kind of web does it make? How many different webs can you find?
- Look up at the clouds. What do you see?
- Find coyote tracks or look at birds and how they fly.
- Find nearby ponds or puddles. Ask: Can you see your own reflection?
- Make up stories and names for the plants, bugs and trees you discover. Have the children tell a story or choose their own name for trees or plants. Make a picture map of where all these things are, and walk to all the places on your picture map while telling the story of each one.
Hi: I am trying to find info about Patrick from Sedona. He used to come to L. A. and tell stories in my club, The Storyteller Cafe, way back about 25 years ago. As I remember, he was a marvelous teller. Any information would be appreciated.
Thank You.
Hello, how great to hear that someone else actually knew Patrick!! I am very sorry to say I have no idea where he is or what happened to him. I wish I knew myself!!
Wendolyn: Yes, he was my favorite. We had him over to our house in Woodland Hills twice, and once he put on a great show at the Storyteller. I have bragged about him for years. I even tried to find him to perform in an other Storyteller in Mesa I owned in 2001. -Ron
My mother used to play us Patrick’s cassette tape of his stories when we would take road trips as kids. I have kept the tape all of these years and finally got the audio transferred to digital. I’d love to know what happened to Patrick.
Hello Andy, I am so glad you have that tap. I loaned mine out and now I don’t have it. If you know a way to get it again I would
be MOST grateful!! And, I would love to know what happened to him to. I don’t even know his last name.
Where do you live that you met Patrick?
Dear Andy, I don’t know if I ever responded to this. I am wondering if there is any way I could get a copy of his tap that you now turned into a CD. I loaned my copy out years ago and it seems that it never got returned. I was just thinking about one of his stories the other day and so wanted to hear it again. Thanks for considering this request. Warmly, Wendolyn
Hi Andy, I am not sure if you ever received my reply to your comment in 2021. I would so love to get a copy of his original tape. Would there be a possibility for that? Thanks for the consideration.
Warmly,
Wendolyn
Hi Wendolyn, I’m just seeing this. Email me at