Everything is a Story

I was in a Lyft the other day. I told my driver, Haile, about my business. He was from Eritrea. I wondered if he thought immigrants from the Horn of Africa would use such a service. It seemed like a new idea to him even though he was in his 60s and had been in the US for quite a while. I asked him if he had been to a funeral or memorial service recently. He had. I asked if there was anything in writing about the deceased. He said yes and proceeded to list the elements. They were predictable – birth, childhood, cause of death, survivors.

I responded, “That’s what I call ‘just the facts.’ They don’t really tell you who the person was. I want to write about why that person’s life was significant, what they did, who they influenced, what they left behind.”

He reflected to himself, possibly thinking of that person whose service he had attended, possibly thinking of others he had lost. Then he said, “I think your idea is good. Everything in life is a story. The story should be told.”