Suppose a dear friend told you a story. It had a real impact on you. You thought the story was important – important enough to share, but you promised your friend you would never repeat it. Your friend made it very clear they never wanted the story told.
Years pass and you have been out of touch with your friend for a long time, and you find yourself wanting to tell the story. You still don’t share it, however you do tell others about the struggle you have in not sharing this story. Those you’ve shared the struggle with encourage you to pass the story along. They tell you it doesn’t matter now because so much time has passed. Of course they are curious.
Let’s assume for discussion’s sake that whether the story is told or not, no one’s life is in danger – it isn’t that kind of story.
Do you or don’t you tell? Does it matter if the person who originally shared the story has died? What if you want to tell the tale, write, and publish it?
Is it your story to tell? Is it ever your story to tell?
– Mary
P.S. I have my opinions on this, and I’d love to hear yours!
Edits:
- 5/5/22 – edited for clarity – a few tweaks.
