I'm Telling a Story Thursday January 15th and You are Invited

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Written 1/6/2026.

Over the summer, I traveled around Lake Michigan on my motorcycle. In doing so, there were many firsts. I’m going to be talking about these a week from Thursday at thepeopletree.org. They host a monthly storytelling gathering at Empire in Naperville.

ThePeopleTree is Naperville’s version of The Moth StorySlam (see themoth.org). People tell true stories about their lives.

January’s theme is “firsts.” This can be interpreted any way the storyteller desires. For me, it will be about my ride around the lake.

I told a story a couple years ago, so I’m back at it again.

I wrote the story, read it out loud and it is 15 minutes long. Note that the story needs to be between 6 and 8 minutes long, so there will be major slashing of the story. I will focus on one recurring theme and cut out everything that doesn’t correspond to it.

If you’d like to come, simply visit the website and grab a ticket (they are $20). You can come have dinner and the show starts at 7 pm.

Here’s a teaser of the story:

This is a story about firsts, fear, and what happens when there’s no way around the storm.

I tried to out-plan it.I rerouted. Delayed. Adjusted.I did everything I could to avoid the thing I was afraid of.And then… there was no avoiding it.

This is a story about what happens when your backup plans run out —

and why sometimes the only way forwardis straight through.

🎤 Sharing this live January 15th.

🌧️ Firsts have a way of finding us.

#TheMoth #StorySlam #Firsts #FacingFear #PersonalStory #LiveStorytelling #DoTheThing #GrowthThroughDiscomfort #TrueStory #Storytelling #thePeopleTree

For reference, if you want a full overview of my trip, my first post is linked below. It’s a travel log vs what I’ll be talking about on the 15th.

Robert

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Robert C Slayton - Grief to Joy and Inspiration

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