I like to tell stories.  A lot.  Back in college I had a friend Nicki who would tell the longest possible version of a story and a friend Jeff who would tell a story in a neatly packaged and short soundbite.  For such a long time, I would preface my stories with…do you want the Nicki version or the Jeff version?  Nicki versions were exceptionally handy for dating adventures while Jeff versions were necessary for less interesting but still important things like updates on work and what I did over the weekend.  I’ve recently been struck by my delight in telling them and my challenge with documenting them, or documenting anything these days.  Between social networking, blogs, podcasts, and e-books we’re all out there telling our stories in interesting yet still decidedly digital mechanisms.  This comes with a slew of pros and cons.  On the one hand, we all have access to share on the other, we’re losing something in the delivery.  Some semblance of expression, emotion, dare I say, our humanity is lost in the ether.  I once attended a dinner where all that I was asked to bring was a story and after we ate, we all sat around in a circle and shared 1 story.  It was lovely and real and brought me to tears and also had me laughing so hard my stomach ached.  I can’t honestly say there is much storytelling I’ve come across online that has elicited such a reaction.  Sure, I’ll smile or share something or even cry…but not nearly so intensely and honestly as when I shared and other shared their moments in person.  This post has wandered down a long road that is starting to seem a bit convoluted but I think what I’m aiming for is just to encourage us to keep the storytelling alive, with each other.  There’s nothing quite like connecting with someone over a tale.