Reflections on the Power of Stories

The Power of Stories

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Human Libraries ….

I love this idea. Human Libraries have been around since 2000 (Wentz, 2013), but I have never experienced one or seen it offered in any of the libraries I have ever visited. I have heard of Borrow a Librarian, but that is different. The concept of a safe place where people can share and there is no judgment seems unreal. We, as a human race, are so judgmental. We judge people by the way they look, act, or even by our preconceived ideas of who they are. Sometimes, if we would just listen and hold our judgement, we would understand people and where they are coming from or how they got to where they are. We might not agree with them, but that is their story, not ours. A lot of the things people are judged for are born out of pain. For some, they would not be where they are if someone had taken the time to listen when they needed them to.

I see the Human Library being used in many different ways. I see a need for people sharing their stories with others. We need to look past the person we see to hear the heart. We really need to see what God sees when He looks at people, ourselves included, not what we see through our distorted eyesight. [God loves everyone (John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life”.) God might not condone people’s actions, but He loves them and He created them (there are many scriptures for this, but I am choosing to use Psalm 139:13-14, where it says “God knit us together in our mother’s womb and we are fearfully and wonderfully made”.)  and He wants to draw all men back unto Himself (John 12:32). We were all born into an evil world. That was not God’s plan. In the beginning, everything was perfect, but humankind messed that up through sin (Genesis 3:6). Sin has messed us all up and it is through words (and belief in our hearts) that we are set free (I know this is an allegory not accepted by many, but listen to the truth in it.) Our words set us free, just as our words set us free for salvation through Christ (“If we confess with our mouth and believe in our heart, (that Jesus Christ is Lord) we will be saved.” Romans 10:9).] Sharing our hearts and experiences can set us free from the bondages that hold us. Healing and freedom can come through our words. I know this is getting deep and seems to be off course, but being a book in a Human Library can be freeing and liberating for those sharing and those listening. The stories being told are true stories, and that is the point of the Human Library. True stories by real people. We as humans (Christians specifically) have a hard time listening to others who do not believe as we do, act as we do, or look as we do, but unless we understand who a person is and how they got to be there, we really cannot reach them either.

Another way I see the Human Library is that the books could be people who have a desire to share, but have a hard time getting people to listen to them. They just want to be heard. In this day and age, do we really listen? Do we set our electronics down and give people our full, undivided attention? Do we really hear what is being said? To hear what is really being said, sometimes we need to listen between the lines and ask questions to draw out the hidden pieces to see the story in its true light.

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Just like this sign says, we all have a story to tell. We need people to slow down, listen, and to give their undivided attention.

I believe the Human Books need to be made up of people of all ages. As a society, we have so much to learn from the elderly. The elderly have so much wisdom and life experience to share with us. They are still valuable and have something to give. On the flip side of the coin, we also have so much to give to the young/youth, including our attention. In today’s world, our young/youth, from some areas of life, have lived a life none of us could imagine, and they have learned things we need to understand. Some of the hard things the young/youth have learned or are presently living with were taught at the hands of our society. We need to value all people. We need to listen and learn, then ask important questions.

I have to admit, I struggled while reading these stories in the resources that I used. I could not see myself sitting, listening to the Human Books. I have a ways to go to be accepting of all people. The one thing that drives me to get there is that God loves them, so I should too. So, I am asking God to get me there and that He would love them through me. I also had to remind myself that the Human Books sharing are just that, “sharing” their life story. They have no agenda. So in part, I also, as the reader, would then get my turn to share my story, and we can both ask questions of each other.

Resources

Blake, J. (2021, November 14). This library lets you borrow people instead of books. It just may help bridge our bitter divisions. CNN Health. https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/14/health/human-library-blake-cec

Wentz, E. (2013, April 26). Human libraries: Sharing the community with itself. Public Libraries Online. https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2013/04/human_librar/