In December 2010 Ex Fabula hosted its first December Spectacular. The Spectacular is our holiday gift to you. It’s a non-competitive program of true and personal stories featuring Ex Fabula Fellows as well as other storytellers selected by a jury of Ex Fabula volunteers. This year’s December Spectacular, “Never Again,” comes to Turner Hall Ballroom on December 17th. Tickets are on sale now and sell out fast.
Deaduri (Dede) Gayles was one of our Spectacular Storytellers back in December 2010. Deidre lost both her parents at a young age. Soon after she found herself living with her aunt, uncle and cousin. Deidre wasn’t used to having a sister neither was her cousin. It took both girls some time to find their own rhythm in this new family unit. But soon enough, they began sharing family secrets, searched for hidden Christmas presents, and gave each other the space they needed to grow.
One the first Christmas after her parents’ passing, Dede was hit with a sudden wave of guilt. See, she was actually enjoying this Christmas. She had forgotten to mourn for a moment. She had forgotten the sadness. She had forgotten. So she retreated to her bedroom to cocoon herself in the sadness that she knew like her favorite blanket. However, soon after she was startled by a ruckus in the front yard. A ruckus that would bring her out of that cocoon a changed girl.
