Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Collecting Stories


Living to tell the tales
Revisiting capsules of time
Bearing our Souls
Sharing our History
Opening Windows to the past
Inviting others into our life
Appreciating our journey
In a cooperative Dance
With each other and Creation
Until the last line is written
We are here collecting stories.

I was at a birthday party Monday night for two dear friends who are a couple.  A few of us were chatting it up, laughing as we told stories from times gone by, when I shared that I have come to believe there are no good or bad experiences rather stories to be told if we live to tell the tales.  And a friend added:  We’re all just here collecting stories.  The truth of this resonated within me as I absorbed the wisdom that poured through this idea.

There was a time I would have argued against that statement as I did years ago when I heard book titles such as Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff (it’s all small stuff) and Life’s a Game:  These are the Rules.  I felt that the enormity of life was reduced in these one-liners but now, I believe that there aren’t absolute truths only “And’s”.  We’re all just here collecting stories AND Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff AND Life’s a Game:  These are the Rules AND so on AND so on.  The authors are giving their perspectives based on their life stories and experiences to inspire, to entertain, to encourage, to remind us of this collective dance and to find a way to enjoy the ride. 

There isn’t one way to live this life.  Life is too damn BIG to encapsulate into one philosophy, one way of being and doing so it is fun to explore the various messages wrapped in stories.  As a born storyteller, I am completely comfortable sharing the divine comedy that is my life rich with very human experiences.  I cannot not tell stories as I weave them into everything I do – writing, speaking, coaching and engaging in conversations.  What I have come to see is my story is everybody’s story.  It may play out differently but we have all been knocked to our knees and had our asses handed to us, we want to know we matter and we want to connect honestly to our Self and others.  The power of sharing my story is beyond me as each person listening is taken into their own story, feeling the feelings over both tragedy and triumph, revisiting moments when they lost their way only to find more of their Self, being in awe of the privilege it is to live to tale the tales and bear witness to the tales of others with gratitude and humor and reverence for it all.

The idea that we are all here collecting stories creates a depth of meaning in everything we do and everything we experience.  There is an invitation to use our stories, sharing our history honestly – not denying the struggles and challenges; opening windows to the past in order to paint pictures of what is possible if we stay the course come what may; allowing others into our life as an act of service, human to human.  We get to pass on hope lifting others where they can see beyond their life circumstances and encourage them to Keep putting one foot in front of the other, Never give up, Believe, Trust, and Expect miracles.  When we appreciate our journey, we can appreciate the human journey, this cooperative dance with each other and all of creation until the last line is written.

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