It can be an invitation for audience participation. Stories often have a pattern of three repetitions with a variation on the fourth. The element of change can be surprising and entertaining. Novak recommends that storytellers look for a way to replace the expected fourth repeat with a variation. Dressing up the story is often a fun and pleasurable part of learning a new tale, but keep in mind the most important message of the story so the embellishments do not become distractions.
Endings are significant parts of the tale.
They are a concrete form of what you love about the story. Once the ending lines have been chosen, many storytellers memorize them. It is often helpful to slow down the pace of speech as the ending lines are delivered, and follow them with an effective bit of silence. This gives listeners a chance to shake themselves, breathe deeply, and return from their imaginary journey. The 398.2 folklore section of the library contains thousands upon thousands of stories from every part of this rich and varied earth we share.