Nowadays, I cook a lot, do a lot of dishes, and so on, usually alone. In my experience, reading isn’t feasible while moving around the kitchen. Listening, however, is.

My kids brought me the habit of listening to YouTube. I’ve noticed them “watching” it, sometimes with only a static image on the screen while a narrator talks. Then, they’re not “watching” YouTube; rather, they’re listening to the narrator tell a story.

In retirement, my mother’s father had the radio on often. My mother, when I was a kid, listened to it for hours a day, while she was cooking, doing dishes, etc. I heard many stories narrated over the radio. As I recall, some were weekly serials that extended over months or longer.

On a blustery winter Saturday or Sunday, I’d hear the radio story from the next room. Not meaning to, I’d get caught up in it. I might even have looked forward, sometimes, to the next installment. On Canada’s Atlantic, winters are long: many weekends might be spent indoors.

Today, YouTube has many channels that focus on storytelling, with just a static picture on the screen, or even an altogether blank screen: the radio habit lives on.

There is much more to say about the premise of story listening. I hope to continue this thread in coming posts:)