Y

ears ago, hearing bedtime stories was the moment many children waited all day for, a chance to chat and bond with their parents.

The habit, however, is slowly dying out, replaced by electronic games and gadget applications that alienate people from their loved ones.

Concerned about this situation, community Ayo Dongeng Indonesia is striving to revive and preserve the bedtime story habit, campaigning to promote the importance of storytelling.

“We want parents to know that there are other ways to have fun and spend quality time with their children than just taking them to malls,” said the community’s founder, M. Ariyo Faridh Zidni.

Ariyo was first captivated by the beauty of storytelling at an event at Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital in Central Jakarta when he was 18, which he held at the request of his university lecturer.

“I could see the happiness in their eyes, which grew wide and sparkled,” he recalled, adding that he had continued to tell stories ever since.

“For me, storytelling is so amazing. It is so simple, and doesn’t take long, but has an amazing effect on those listening,” said Ariyo, who was inspired by the legendary storyteller and puppeteer Suyadi, popularly known as Pak Raden, who passed away last year.

In December 2011, at the request of some of his students of storytelling, Ariyo established Ayo Dongeng Indonesia.

The community currently has 120 active members in Greater Jakarta.

In their attempts to promote the importance of storytelling, Ayo Dongeng Indonesia holds storytelling events at least once a month in public areas such as Suropati Park and Menteng Park in Central Jakarta, public libraries and even hospitals.

In celebration of Saturday’s National Children’s Day, the community will hold a pertunjukan dongeng (fairy tale show) at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah in East Jakarta. The event will include a workshop on creative teaching and a discussion entitled “Storytelling is easy.”

Ariyo called on parents to use storytelling to educate and develop communication with their children.

“Through storytelling, parents will get used to speaking and sharing with their offspring, instead of lecturing them. It can also build children’s characters and stimulate their imagination at an early age,” the 36-year-old librarian said.

Storytelling also works to form reading habits among children and sharpen their language skills, he said.

Sekarsari Utami, a 28-year-old mother, has long realized the benefits of storytelling and rigorously maintains a habit of reading bedtime stories to her 2-year-old son.

She said that storytelling was the best and easiest way to express and convey the values of life.

“I often read him stories that have moral messages, especially regarding how he should treat others,” she said, adding that storytelling had also helped strengthen her bond with her son.

She further said that storytelling had many advantages for child development. “It enriches my son’s vocabulary. He is able to memorize every part of each story, because I repeat them over and over to him,” Sekar said.

Ariyo expressed optimism that more parents would be brought up to speed with the benefits of storytelling for children and would spare more time for the activity.

“Don’t look for spare time for storytelling, but spare your time for storytelling,” he said. (sha)