Tag: journal

meditations on stories ii

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Continuing my contemplation on stories…

I was thinking about the influence of stories in our lives. More specifically, the stories that we tell ourselves. Don’t sleep; we all tell ourselves stories, personal narratives that consciously or subconsciously influence our decisions and how we live our lives.

“I will always be fat. I deserve to be fat.”

“My mom was such a great mom and I will never be able to measure up. I’m a terrible mother.”

“I could never be that open and vulnerable. I’m too afraid.  I won’t be successful.”

The stories can be glaring or subtle because sometimes, we don’t even know that we are telling ourselves these stories.

The great things about books is that they can make us aware and be used to change the narratives of our minds. Read the right book and we develop another sense of perspective. We begin to question the validity of our stories.

til tomorrow, enjoy life

Catch up on the rest of this series.

am i missing out on my real life?

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The Ultimate Library

Like Belle in the song “Belle” of the Disney classic, Beauty and the Beast who is at the very least partially oblivious to what is going on around her because she has her nose stuck in a book, am I missing out on my real life in the joy of my effort to read as many books as I possibly can?  I have often wondered about that.

The benefits of reading are well-documented: staving off dementia and Alzheimer’s, expansion of one’s vocabulary (this has been a problem when I go to speak a word that I have never heard pronounced; I know what it means, I just don’t know how to say it. It’s made for some hilarious moments), improved focus and concentration, the list goes on without even discussing the knowledge and insights that one gains while reading. But how much is too much?

After tracking my time, per Laura Vanderkam’s recommendation, I discovered that I was wasting much more time letting Netflix know that I was “still watching” after hours on end and playing Candy Crush (does anyone still play that?) on my phone than I ever will reading. And that was good enough for me.

I believe we were all born with a unique thing that we tend to enjoy.  My mom loves jigsaw puzzles.  But if the needs of daily life are being met, I now believe, that I can find the time to do the thing that I love, if I intentionally chose to do THAT thing, as oppose to wasting time doing that things that are just meh.  I’m looking at you, Netflix.

What’s your thing to do that you love?

til tomorrow, enjoy life

P.S. I have always wondered whether a part of Belle’s motivation in marrying the Prince was all the books in that gorgeous library.  It had to be part of her considerations, don’t you think? It would have been part of my mine. LOL

Catch up on the rest of this series.

meditation on stories

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accessory blur book close up

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

I have been thinking a lot about stories recently. Probably because I am considering a number of storylines for books and articles. Maybe because of what’s been happening in our society recently.

There’s no denying the fact that stories are very powerful things, for good or for ill.  Jesus told many stories that were so simple that kids could understand the stories’ lessons but so layered that theologians still wrestle with the stories’ meanings.

There would be no personal or global history without stories. I don’t know about yours, but when my family gets together, stories (sometimes the same ones) are told about my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, allowing me to know them in meaningful ways. Without written and oral story-telling, we wouldn’t know anything: from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, to the Pilgrims’ landing in New England, to the experiences of the Middle Passage or the Holocaust.

On the other hand, if there is no opportunity for certain groups, cultures, etc. to tell their stories or for their stories to be heard, we are left with the fabric of our human experience not fully woven.  And we can’t possibly understand them if we don’t listen to the stories.

I know I couldn’t.  We could start there: what don’t we understand? With what group do we disagree? How do we meet people where they are, if we haven’t a clue as to where that actually is?

It begins with listening to the stories being told around us. And searching for the stories that we need to hear.

til tomorrow, enjoy life

I’m writing for the 31 days in October about books and reading.

Catch up on the rest of this series.