A couple weekends ago I told Alexa, “Play Jimmy Buffet”, and she did. This turned into about a week of Jimmy Buffet pouring through my house.
People around the world know Jimmy Buffet as a famous singer. Not just here in Mobile, Alabama, where he grew up, but all over the world.
When I was a kid my step-dad introduced me to Jerry Clower. He had a box of Jerry Clower cassette tapes and we, along with my friends, wore them out. We knew every story, and Jerry’s humor never really got old.
People in the South know Jerry Clower as a Southern stand up comedian. I have no idea how famous he was in other places, but he was well known throughout the rural South.
Listening to Jimmy that week reminded me of Jerry. Even though one is a singer and one was a comedian they have something in common….. they are story tellers.
Jimmy Buffett has earned a king’s ransom by simply singing about his life, about growing up in the Mobile area, and then the craziness he saw, or was a part of, beyond the Port City.
Jimmy isn’t really making anything up, he’s just putting his life experience to songs, and people around the world can relate.
Jerry Clower earned Southern fame by simply talking about his life, the things he saw or was a part of, while growing up dirt poor with a large extended family in rural Amite County, Mississippi.
Jerry didn’t really make anything up either, he just put his life into colorful stories, and people, especially in the deep South, can relate.
At the end of the day, they are not teachers or preachers, just story tellers, and their “work” is well received because…. people can relate.
As for Shane Hale…. I don’t sing, I don’t do stand up comedy, I’m certainly not famous, and I don’t get paid for my “work” of writing like Jimmy and Jerry got paid for singing and talking.
So, why is my name on the list in the photo with them? Because we do have one thing in common, we are all story tellers…. and people can relate to our “story”.
Just like people can relate to your story…. but you have to tell it, or share it, for it to be heard.
I write primarily about Faith, what God is doing or has done in my life since I “got in the boat”, and sometimes of the events leading up to that decision several years ago.
I don’t use big words or fancy phrases, and often it isn’t written with either proper grammar or punctuation, but because it is authentic…. people can relate.
People can relate because at the end of the day we are all a lot alike, fighting the same demons, carrying the same burdens, making the same mistakes, and often ending up at that same crossroad in life…. left for more of the same, ahead for a small change, right for a radical change?
So, whether you sing about it, talk about it, or write about it, don’t be afraid to share your life, the breakdowns and the breakthroughs, your moment at the crossroads, because trust me…. people can relate.
They can relate to where you are, where you have been, and they might just be willing to follow you where you are going, if they hear your story.
At the end of the day, we don’t need to be Jimmy Buffet or Jerry Clower famous for our story to make a difference in God’s economy or for His Kingdom, we just need to be available, and have the courage to share it.
Get In The Boat. Do Your Part. Take A Right.
From Nose To Toes!
Shane / #16…. The1SixProject.com
(Yes, Sharing Is Encouraged 👊🏻)