The Lake of Ceranest is a beautiful place.

And Ceranest is the quiet and remote town to the east of France. It has been said that people living in this town never grow old. Of course, this is merely a legend. But even some legends have their basis based on facts. And this is one of them. Stories on the origins of how Ceranest comes about have been passed through the folks residing in the town for years. Ceranest has a culture of cohesiveness, and the people in Ceranest often comes together to celebrate any happy occasions.  Doors are left open at night since theft and burglars are almost unheard of.  Smiles are often seen on the faces of the Ceranestians (as the residents like to call themselves), a sign of contentment and joy.

The name of the town Ceranest does not come by accident. Rather, it is based on a folklore. There once was a hero named Ceracrest who braved the storm to claim the land of Ceranest as his own. The land is known as Coldfrost then, as the place was covered in snow and what was left living are the scavengers and reptiles that fought for survival against the temperamental weather and the intense cold. It was a dreadful place where no humans will ever hope to live in.  But Ceracrest believed in the impossible and so set about setting up a hut for shelter and slaughtering the nearby wolves for food. Over time, the predatory animals began to learn to respect this man whom they have initially regarded as a prey but have turned out to be a formidable foe.

With his skills as a hunter, Ceracrest set about setting fire to the trees in the woods. Strange as it may sound, the fire spread through the land and warmth soon replaces the cold.  Merchant ships soon anchored near the land and explorers began to arrive. People began to settle on ColdFrost, a land who has long lost the significance of its name. As Coldfrost warmed up to its occupants, the residents decided to name the land after its founder and called it Ceranest, adding the term “nest” to the founder’s name to signify the cohesiveness of the community.

Although the land of Ceranest has lost its cold climate, the snow that has melted has formed a lake that surrounds it. This lake is the legendary Lake of Ceranest, and it’s considered by many to be the most beautiful lake in the world. It is also the testimony of one man’s sheer will and determination to turn a forsaken land into one of vibrancy. Lake Ceranest is also the place where The Fisherman seeks solace for the most of his life. Evenings have always been beautiful at the lake, where the water reflects the starry night sky.

And it was on one of these fateful evenings when The Fisherman met Sam.

The sun was sinking into the horizon when The Fisherman was in the midst of packing up his catch for the day and securing the fishing net to his bicycle. The bicycle has been The Fisherman’s mode of transport for years. He has not bought the bicycle but has received it as a gift from one of his neighbours. Gift-giving is a common tradition practised by Ceranestians. Several kids soon ran towards him, and a few of them can be seen to be hugging Peace, a Golden Retriever that belongs to The Fisherman. Peace and The Fisherman has been friends for years now. Come to think of it, Peace is now nearing his prime.

Suddenly, a man ran up the road towards the Fisherman. He was dressed in a blue long-sleeved shirt with a yellow tie and black pants, an attire seldom seen in Ceranest. Upon seeing him, the children began to scramble and hide behind The Fisherman, stealing a peek at the man from behind The Fisherman once in a while.

“Hi,” The man greeted The Fisherman. “Name’s Sam. I am from an advertising firm Lockart & Harter. I am here on business. My car has broken down further down this road, and I wonder if I can get some help. I can offer cash upfront if you need them.”

The fisherman took one long look at Sam.

“Cash don’t work here.” The Fisherman muttered.

“I’m sorry?” Sam was straining his ears. He believed that he has heard it right the first time, but he just needs to confirm it. In the same way that he always confirms a client’s request before every deal.

“I said cash don’t work here. Cash is not the currency in Ceranest.”

“Well, I can use credit. Which card do you accept? I have a few here.”

Sam began to open his wallet and began pulling out the numerous credit cards that he has on hand.  To Sam, credit cards are a necessary possession for any advertising executive.  They facilitate smooth business transactions when he dines with clients since he’s always the guy who gives the treat.

 ”Credit cards are not heard of here as well.” Turning to Peace with the intention of feeding him, The Fisherman smiled. “Advertising guys like you makes credit cards magical and global on TV, showing that credit cards are portals to a good life since it’s acceptable by everyone. Well, young man, credit cards are unheard of in some places, and Ceranest happens to be one of them.”

“So, what’s the currency in Ceranest?” Sam enquired.

“Sincerity and gratitude.”

The reply took Sam by surprise. Firstly, he has never heard of Ceranest. It’s a strange town to begin with, where every resident smiles at you when you walk past them. There seems to be a bouncing stride when they walk, as if the residents are always happy when they go about their daily lives.  And now, he’s being told that reciprocity is a form of currency in this town? This is just plain weird.  Back in his hometown, ”transactions” is the word of the day. Not ”sincerity”. And definitely not “gratitude”.

 ”So…” Sam began to close his wallet and put it back into his pants. “How do I pay with ’sincerity’ or ‘gratitude’?”

“Well, let’s see…” The Fisherman looks upwards, pondering deeply as if Sam has just asked a very abstract question, one that requires much thought.  After a long pause, The Fisherman turned to Sam. “A smile……. or a nod of your head?”

 ”Serious? How do all the people survive without cash or any form of credit?”

“All of us have our own strengths. We just use them to help one another. And as you can see with your eyes, we are not only surviving, we are doing very well. We are a group of close-knitted and self-sustaining communities. We plant crops, keep some for ourselves and exchange the rest with our friends who will offer us some form of aid in return. Maybe it’s educating their children? I provide these. Or maybe, it’s elderly care? Darley over the other end of the town provides those. ”

“All the residents in Ceranest are still bartering?” Sam wondered aloud.

“I wouldn’t exactly put it that way.” The Fisherman stole a glance at Sam before returning to the task of transferring his catch from a pail to several large plastic bags filled with seawater. The Fisherman intends to bring these bags back to his family to show his children. It’s not often that he was able to capture such big salmons and eels.  ” ‘Exchanging of goodwill’ will be a better phrase, don’t you think?”

Sam was amazed at the way things work around Ceranest. It’s true that the entire town is self-sustaining.  He has never seen anything quite like it before. The people have all the basic necessities and they seem to be satisfied with their possession. There are  no big cars and there’s no private housing.

How is advertising ever going to even survive here? 

This thought flashed through Sam’s head.

As if reading Sam’s thoughts, The Fisherman turned to Sam and offered him a packet of water with a red salmon swimming inside.

“This is how we advertise. We offer our friends some of our catch and have them coming back for more. No TV, no radio and no internet.”

“You know about the existence of the internet?”

“Well, yes. I know Phil Collins and Kenny G too.”

“How?”‘

“Word of mouth. We have international friends here as well, you know. There’s tons of information being circulated in the world right now. But somehow, only good things come through here, you know? Isn’t this how it works? The good things always stand out from the rest. Someone will eventually recognise them and through word of mouth, they became popular culture. Word of mouth is cheaper and often more effective than advertising, yes?”

Sam has nothing to say to that, as it seems to be true. It’s almost taboo for an advertising guy to even acknowledge this fact but still, this seems to be so.

“I am heading to Janley’s garage to see if he’s able to help you” The Fisherman began to ride his bicycle eastwards, the empty pails bouncing on one side of the bicycle and the several plastic bags of fishes on the other, swinging around with water splashing out of the bags due to the impact of the bicycle on the uneven ground.  

“Hey, I am going with you!” Sam shouted.

Without turning his head, The Fisherman pointed to his right.

“Head to the house on my right. Within two hundred metres, you will come to a hut with a signboard “Fish’s best friend” above the entrance. That is my place. Knock on the door and when my son Joseph opens the door, tell him that you are The Fisherman’s friend and pass him the packet of fish I have handed you. He will let you in.”

Fish’s best friend? What an irony!

Sam let out a laugh as he walks towards the hut as directed by The Fisherman. As he trekked along the worn pavement, he turned to look at the disappearing view of The Fisherman as he took a left turn and disappeared around a street corner. Peace followed closely behind. With nobody else to protect them, the kids scrambled in all directions, seeking the safely of the bushes and trees from the stranger that they considered strange. 

Suddenly, Sam came to a realisation that he did not know The Fisherman’s name. 

Letting out another laugh, Sam continued walking.

To be Continued…….

*All characters in this story are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Some issues worth exploring:

• Farmers used to produce their own crops and barter (defined as ”
  to trade goods or services without the exchange of money” by the freedictionary.com) them for goods that they need. Why is bartering replaced with currency and what are their differences?
• Is the usage of currency more efficient than bartering? Why is the use of currency favoured over bartering?  
• What is the effectiveness of advertising as compared to word of mouth (defined as “spoken communication” by thefreedictionary.com)?
• How can advertising be more effective?
• In a world of consumerism, is the value of cash more valuable than an expression of sincerity or gratitude?

Storytelling has been getting more and more popular in Singapore. Or maybe, it has always been popular.

Storytelling has always been magical, because all (if not, most) of us love stories. This is what makes reading a novel or watching a movie so interesting. To understand the allure of stories, we need to dissect them and look at the various factors that capture and sustain the interest of readers and movie-goers respectively:

• Themes: All of us love a good theme.  In movies or novels, we love the portrayal of heroism when the hero saves the damsel in distress. We love the moral theme of good overcoming evil. We love the romantic themes of lovers overcoming all obstacles to be together. While there are some of us who feel that this is a form of escapism, I feel that the thematic elements serve a more fulfilling purpose: to enable us to move towards the greater good.  We love to be the person who is recognised for our achievements, we love to be the person who contributes to mankind and we love to be someone who is loved. Thus, themes enable us to fulfill this fantasy, which we are able to turn it into a reality.

• Dialogues:  The dialogues in films and novels often have the power to take us into the world of narratives, where emotions are expressed and characters are revealed. It allows us to peel away the layers of mystique from characters in movies and books while offering us a glimpse into their rich inner world.

• Morality: There are often lessons that we all love to draw from stories. Just think of the Little Red Riding Hood and the Sleeping Beauty. Don’t these stories teach us lessons? Then there’s Aesop’s fables, whereby morality lessons are often imbued in each of the short stories.  Stories often offer us glimpses into the world of others and through their eyes, we learn the lessons of life.

Taking all of the abovementioned factors into consideration, we can integrate stories with these factors and use it in presentations. Of course, the presentation sessions should not consist merely of stories, since factual details are also important. However, one or two stories narrated by a member or two do make a presentation more lively and interesting.

Stories are also useful when they are used to start or end a presentation. As audiences are able to recall the beginning and the conclusion of a presentation better, it will be good for presenters to begin and/or conclude the presentation session with a good story, and a lesson behind it.

So, the next time you present in your teams, think about using the art of storytelling. It will probably enhance your presentation.