We often think of stories as sweeping arcs, magnificent manuscripts, epic memories, and defining moments but, in real life, most stories are small and portable. Tiny tales. I call them pocket stories. Tiny tales are not really tucked into pockets. They are the narratives we carry in our daily lives, often without noticing. To me, they are a bit like memoirs, and mostly like confessions, but essentially parts of who we are. Pocket stories are the emotional tales of being human. What do I really mean? Some memories are too raw or too private to write, to be a book, to sit on someone’s shelf.They are more like a photograph in a one person’s wallet or pocket. A pocket story might be the one sentence that someone said that changed your directionin life, the scent of rain the day you made a brave decision, or a stranger’s kindness that convinced you the world still has good people in it. Pocket stories are tiny moments that have momentous outcomes or permanent anchors in our lives. Some tiny tales are more than memories. They are truths, like “I survived that” or “I am capable of more than I think” or “I am allowed to begin again.” These truths might not fill a book or a chapter, but they stay with you. Pocket stories are sometimes symbols and objects, like a ticket stub from a concert that changed you, or a key from a door you’ll never open again. To someone else, it is nothing. To you, it is a pocket novel. Pocket stories may be tiny tales of resilience or survival, but only the ones you reach for when you need proof that you have already lived through worse, far worse, than you’re living through right now. Big stories may define our lives but the tiny tales sustain it. Pocket stories travel with you, remind you who you are, connect your past to your future, give your present its shape, and ground you in meaning. They are the pieces of narrative you can touch anytime, anywhere. Pocket stories are things we tell only to ourselves. These are the stories that never make it onto the page, never become a poem, and never get spoken aloud. They are felt, not written. They are the stories of who you wish to become, the stories of what you fear, the stories of what you long for, or the stories of how far you’ve come without applause. Pocket stories are the details that reveal your authentic self. But pocket stories can be creative seeds. Writers often carry story fragments the way birds carry twigs: not yet a nest, but the beginning of one. It might be a character idea, asnippet of dialogue overheard on the metro, a face seen in a dream, a single image, or a woman standing at a window with her hand on the glass. These fragments are not stories – not yet. They are pocket stories: raw, unfinished, and still active. Pocket stories are the stories most worth telling, if not to others, then to yourself. Pocket stories remind me that I’m a storyteller, even when I’m not writing. Can’t see the whole article? Want to view the original article? Want to view more articles? Go to Martina’s Substack: The Stories in You and Me More Paris articles are in my Paris website The Paris Residences of James Joyce Rainy Day Healing - gaining ground in life. You're currently a free subscriber to The Stories in You and Me . For the full experience, upgrade your subscription.
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Friday, 21 November 2025
Tiny tales we carry with us
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