After listening to a BBC Radio 4 series recently on the art of storytelling, I realised how fortunate I am to be able to have this blog to express my opinions, view of life and even my values; albeit creatively. For some, they would agree that the speech in our society has become too free and that people believe anything that is posted on social media without question. Those that post an alternative view, are trolled into submission. Yet for many, there is no free speech … still. And when they do speak, it has to be written in a way that the meaning is hidden; understanding only for the sympathetic. The questioner is facing imprisonment and death. They’ve had to become creative, where we choose to. So as we welcome in 2021, perhaps we should be grateful we can express ourselves without fear, and support those that … can’t. To listen to the BBC Radio 4 series, What is a Story? written by Marina Warner, please go to: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0628b74/episodes/guide