Joy Harjo & the Importance of Storytelling

Performer and writer Joy Harjo’s new memoir, Crazy Brave, is not just a retelling of her entire life. Harjo uses elements of poetry, songs, stories from her tribe, and stories from her life to encompass her life. She spoke on campus Monday in the Whalen Gymnasium to give insight into her decision making on the book and to tell more stories about herself.

The one thing to take away from Harjo’s talk is the importance of stories. The decision to write her memoir using specific tales from her own life is a decision she made after years of deliberation. Instead of lecturing down to an audience by giving advice from her own personal experiences, she invites everyone in to see and reflect on them themselves. I was reminded of bedtime stories as Harjo told us about the time she was alone walking on the side of a highway in Chicago or about her time at an Indian school in Sante Fe.

Harjo ended the talk by encouraging others to reflect on their stories and think about the moments that make up our life. “Even the bad ones”, she said. “Because someday they’ll make a good story.”