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The Power and Beauty of Stories

I love stories... whether I hear them, read them or see them.  They make me feel things, and they also teach me things.

Yes, I'm going to talk about Dimash Kudaibergen again.  He is a story teller par excellence, via his music and his lyrics.  So young, you may say, to earn such a title ... Surely he hasn't lived long enough to have gathered all those stories in his heart and to be able to share those stories with others.  But watch a video of him singing... and tell me that isn't a superb example of someone telling a story that grabs you by your heartstrings and stays with you for days and days afterward.  If I were a Buddhist, I would call him an old soul.

Stories are powerful because they can paint swathes of colour across your mind and they can change the way you think.  But the stories need to be presented in the right way, with the right words.  I've always been a 'word' person and I've always believed I needed to know the words to be truly touched.  Then I heard Dimash sing 'Late Autumn'.  In Mandarin.  I don't understand Mandarin.  But he made me feel the pain.

Call me a slow learner, but  it seems that music CAN tell a story.  And you didn't really need to know the words.  Hmm, that suddenly reminded me of Leonardo Constantine, someone who is really good at storytelling through dance.

Still, I hear many people are busy learning Kazakh or Russian.  Hmm, it seems that a singing prodigy is also a good way to get people interested in a country.

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