Gloria was a better storyteller than I am. This is difficult for me to admit, since I am the teacher, and I am the one who gives presentations for a living, but it's absolutely true. I didn't realize it for a number of years, since Gloria is even more of an introvert than I am.
(I know that my statement that Gloria is an introvert will surprise a lot of people who knew her. Gloria was a singer, and a soloist. She had, of necessity, developed a stage presence. She was also a secretary [or executive assistant, if you prefer], and had, again of necessity, developed a very forceful style that she needed to present when dealing with managers and recalcitrant staff. A lot of people who knew Gloria only in these environments would be surprised at me saying that she was an introvert.)
Gloria was a better storyteller than I was. She'd had longer at it. For one thing, she was older than I was. For another, she had been on stage since she was twelve (and "off stage" since she was nine: a solo part, behind a curtain, supporting what was going on "on-stage"). As a singer, of course, and particularly as a soloist, she had to develop a stage presence. She had to develop the ability to deliver patter in between, or simply to introduce, the songs that she was performing. As a soloist, she was, essentially, part of the leadership team, even if people didn't always see it that way. She knew her responsibility, and took it seriously, and developed abilities, and styles, that were necessary to it.
Gloria was a singer and a soloist. But she often noted that, even at the age of twelve, she realized that her gift of song was a gift from God, and that it was to be used in His service. Gloria did not do light opera, musicals, or community choirs, or the other types of singing that people think of when I say she was a singer. She sang in church. She sang in worship services. She sang to the glory of God. She told me, on a few occasions, that every time she sang, she understood; she felt; that someone in the congregation needed to hear that song, and was touched by that performance. (She also said that choosing the right song was not her job. God was her booking agent, and knew what was needed. Gloria's job was simply to say yes, when asked to sing.) Singing was not, for Gloria, just a nice thing to do. She did enjoy music, but her own singing was a spiritual experience. On the rare occasions that others could convince Gloria to sing for light opera, or do a concert of show tunes (generally for an old folks home) she neither enjoyed it, nor did it work out particularly well.
Gloria remembered that, when she was very young, she desperately wished that she could be the one who could tell family stories, and particularly the ones that started "[number of] years ago ..." So she was very alert to storytelling, and she did it well.
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