Spokane storytellers describe pivots in life with a theme that creates connections

Blaine Atkins came to Gonzaga University straddling two cultures. As an American citizen raised in the Philippines, he’s used public storytelling to focus meaning on how that’s shaped him.

The 22-year-old college senior is among six or seven storytellers – of various ages and backgrounds – scheduled at 7 pm Thursday through the nonprofit Pivot Spokane, which hosts storytelling events around themes.

This week’s theme is “About Time.” Each storyteller has about 10 minutes to tell a real-life story at the event at the Washington Cracker Building, 304 W. Pacific Ave. Admission is free, but a $10 donation is suggested.

Cramming life events and emotions into a short narrative forces the speaker to focus on what’s meaningful while still conveying it in a story format, Atkins said. He’s shaped his story around what home means to him. His parents, originally from California, moved to the Philippines to teach English two years before Atkins was born, and they’ve never left.

“For my whole life before, if you asked me where I was from, I’d say, ‘I’m from the US’ because I went to an international school where a lot of people spent their life moving around,” he said . “If they were from Korea, they’d say. ‘I’m Korean,’ and I’d say, ‘Oh, I’m from America’ because I had an American passport; it made sense.

“Then I came to the US and if you asked people where they’re from, they’d say, ‘I’m from Portland’ or ‘I’m from San Francisco.’ I’d be like, well, I don’t have a city to say I’m from like anybody else here.”

“Then I started saying, ‘I guess I’m from the Philippines,’ but that doesn’t feel quite right because I don’t have a Philippines passport, but that’s definitely home. That’s one of the interesting things about what home is.”

Atkins also had to navigate cultural differences between the countries. He’s worked to convey those feelings – and what he now appreciates from both – into his storytelling.

“It took me a year or so to feel comfortable in US culture because home was such a feeling of this combination of the Philippines culture and international school culture and being in the States, and what exactly that means, what’s different here and how to adapt to that. It’s hard to put words to that sometimes.”

But the short-format storytelling is a balance of summary and events while conveying emotions, he said.

“What do you focus on and bring life to specific moments, or then zoom out and summarize a whole year, so that gives life to your story around a theme in an interesting way?”

Storytelling is a leadership tool, said Josh Armstrong, a founding board member at Pivot and a Gonzaga assistant professor in the school of leadership studies. He and several other Spokane leaders started Pivot in February 2017.

“It’s been recorded by our local PBS station, and to our amazement, 200 or 300 people would show up,” he said.

The group took time off during the pandemic but returned with an event last summer. That’s where Atkins, who took a leadership and storytelling class from Armstrong, got hooked.

Pivot Spokane storytelling is somewhat arts and culture, but also more, Armstrong said. His leadership and storytelling class recognizes storytelling as a leadership skill.

“We can use storytelling as a way to convey ideas or influence other people,” Armstrong said.

“It’s also just an outstanding way to gain self-awareness. Even yesterday my students were telling a ‘who we are’ story – what’s a moment that they connected with community, family, friends, teams, organizations – that they could capture in a 10-minute story.

“Just getting to hear these remarkable stories, even 20-year-olds at Gonzaga have lived full lives in places where they have experienced great joy and pain. Their ability to reflect on that and tell those stories is really powerful.”

The storytelling can be about a turning point in life, which Armstrong acknowledges is tough to condense, but it allows for insight.

“In 10 minutes, how are you really going to convey those powerful moments? But you can bring us into a moment that was powerful for you. You can convey the emotion of that moment, and others know what that feels like because we’ve experienced that. Helping to describe the details and putting people there is sort of an art form.”

Retelling of life stories for some students also has meant reconciling family members who were absent at important times or coming to grips with something. In creating a story, it might turn from a narrative as a victim to an empowerment in recognizing the resilience that it brought, Armstrong said.

He first encountered the short, public storytelling format in other cities such as New York and Los Angeles. Or some might know of it from NPR’s “The Moth” podcast. In them all, the sharing in parts of normal life can create community and connection, he said. In 2017, Pivot Spokane members saw a need to do this, “when our culture at times can seem so fragmented,” Armstrong said.

He said that connection also can be found in a quote kept by Fred Rogers, known as Mr. Rogers for his children’s TV show. The quote said, “Frankly, there isn’t anyone you couldn’t learn to love once you’ve heard their story.”

“That’s so true,” Armstrong said. “Bringing in stories from different voices in Spokane around a theme, it’s not just for arts and culture, but it’s really a place to connect with others.”

Atkins said he’s made his peace around what’s home. At first, he felt a little put off in the US, but within two years, Spokane fit.

“A line from my story is talking about being thrown off by how people were oddly self-promoting and direct, and body language just not quite matching what people said in my mind, and missing this ever-present humor moving throughout conversations,” Atkins said. “It’s very common in the Philippines for people to be looking for the joy and humor in everyday interactions.”

“Over time, you grow to realize that it is actually convenient sometimes just to say and hear what people mean instead of doing this dance around the subject, even if that’s what I find more comfortable.”

Atkins, also co-coordinator of GU’s Story Slam, went to his first Pivot story slam this past summer, after taking Armstrong’s leadership and storytelling class. The next GU’s Story Slam is scheduled for March 28 at the Wolff Auditorium with the theme of “anchor.”

Atkins, whose younger sister also goes to Gonzaga, is set to graduate this year with a degree in electrical engineering. Somehow, storytelling will remain, he said. Atkins hopes to work in the engineering field that allows some creative freedom, and also where people and technology can overlap.