We're all great storytellers - How we construct our daily lives with the stories we hold
We are a species of story tellers. I picture our earliest ancestors sitting around the campfire sharing their stories of hunting and gathering, complete with exaggerated contributions for effect and drama.
Of course even this image is probably a fable compared to reality but it makes for a good story.
Story telling is so ingrained in our DNA and psyche that we’re engaged in weaving a good yarn even when we don’t realize it.
We do it all day, and often we’re the only witness to our masterful creations.
Like so many other things – our labels, buried treasures, and apologies - our own stories serve a purpose.
The dialogue we engage in in order to make sense of ourselves and our world make up the stories of our lives – they direct and guide us, often making us into the very people we think we are.
Sometimes we’re playing the Fairy Godmother and shining a light on our best qualities. And sometimes we’re playing the villain and beating ourselves up for not knowing better, not saying the right thing, not doing more, or not being more.
But no matter which character we're inhabiting, the story is often fiction.
Some of these best sellers may sound like,
I need to be skinny in order for people to treat me with the respect I deserve
If I don't do it no one else will.
If I'm not hustling then shiz isn't getting done.
Beauty is pain and looks like....
I'm not someone who can do...
I don't have the resources or know-how
I can't inhabit that role or space
There isn't room for me there
I can't make waves
I can't say No
It's not safe to rest
The truth is, we didn't write these stories. We had a few co-authors and ghost writers who swooped in and put the words on the page - societal pressures, diet culture and media, familial inheritance and ancestral wounding, to name a few.
You can rewrite your stories.
If there are stories you're ready to rewrite, I offer you a brief practice to begin cracking open the spine and getting familiar with the narrative.
First, notice the feelings that a story brings up. And if you don't yet know how to identify a story, start with the big feelings in your life. The times when you feel uncomfortable or something isn't sitting right with you.
Bring your curiosity to these feelings and ask what's the story under the feeling?
What words is your brain bringing to the table in order to explain the feelings?
Imagine you're an archeologist scraping layers of dirt and dust away from a gem and ask, what's below that story? What's below the explanation?
Each layer presents us with new and critical information for what the story is, where it came from, and what impact it's having.
This excavation provides us with guidance in how we may alchemize the story into a more authentic and true narrative.
Phew, that was a lot, I know.
If you're new to this work it can feel weird at first - and overwhelming.
But it becomes liberating. One story at a time, we remember who we are and Reclaim ourselves as the self-lead, vibrant, powerful, and intuitive expert of ourselves.
If you’re ready to look at your stories, let go of those that don’t serve you, and rewrite your stories to free yourself from the villainous shackles that were made of fairy dust the whole time, join us in Reclaim Your Body, Rewrite Your Stories.
Until next time,
