We think in narratives all day long, and it doesn’t seem to matter if they’re about buying groceries or what we think about work, our spouse or anything else. We make up stories for just about every action and conversation.

Twenty-five hundred years ago, Homer spun a mesmerizing tale about the Trojan horse. The Greek playwrights conjured great stories. Shakespeare’s renowned for his narratives. And the Bible provides a plethora of memorable stories.

Stories can put my whole brain to work in a wide variety of formats. “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” “The Little Prince,” and Dr. Seuss’s “The Cat in the Hat” were an important part of my childhood.

I later discovered some of the greatest stories ever told: short stories like O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Maji,” Ambrose Bierce’s “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” Leo Tolstoy’s “The Death of Ivan Ilyich” and perhaps the very best of all, James Thurber’s “The Catbird Seat” and “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.”

Comedians Jim Gaffigan, Dave Chapelle and Chris Rock spin good yarns.

Movies like “Citizen Kane” captivate me with their compelling stories. And musicians like Harry Chapin (“Cat’s in the Cradle”) also offer good stories.

I’ll always treasure the piercing wit of the most honored columnist in history, Chicagoan Mike Royko. And I value the many, well-regarded Daily Astorian and Chinook Observer storytellers.

I think we’re hard-wired for stories. For me, storytelling holds the key to a joy-filled lifestyle.

Robert Brake

Ocean Park, Washington