Your Story Matters

How was your week? Were you able to create some quiet space to allow your inner creative to speak to you? I sure hope you did and that you were inspired to keep that communion with the inner creative going! Your story matters.

I have been a mental health therapist for over 18 years now. When I begin working with a new client I allow them to tell me the story they want to tell and\every person starts at a different place. Many times it’s the past, and other times they start with present problems but usually seem to make their way back to the past. This always makes sense to me because our past, our history, those things we’ve survived, those moments we have relished, they all shape us into who we are today. And the same is true of what we experience today-those moments molding us into the shape of who we will one day become.

But it’s not only those things, those experiences and the people on our path who shape us, but also the way that we decide to contend with those things that we must face that makes a difference in our outcome as a person. Will we accept the experience and all that it holds for us (those thing both enjoyable and uncomfortable?) or will we choose to avoid the pain, fight against the discomfort and thus in time become bitter and jaded?

I learned a lot about this when I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. I had already been through bone cancer as a 17-18 year old girl but then there I was again, 40-something and facing the same scary/painful/uncomfortable thing I’d faced all those years ago. I was forced again to deal with the tension between suffering and joy. I was at a point where I needed to decide if this suffering would mean something or if I’d shrink back and let it be a meaningless beat-down. The following words are from the journals I kept while going through breast cancer treatment:

... I came to this conclusion: to me, there is another side to struggle that has nothing to do with discomfort or pain. To me, the other side of struggle is the goodness of God, the light in the dark, wisdom gained in the midst of chaos or adversity. So while I face more difficult decisions, I rest in the fact that I am not confronting a foe, but instead I am approaching the Throne of Grace and ultimate Goodness. I am not entering a battle, but am dancing in the light. I can rest in the fact that no matter the circumstance, I will grow here.

Armed with the knowledge that we will grow and learn something in the midst of our struggles, we can use the experience for a greater good! Even if you’ve never experienced cancer, or the death of anyone near you, or anything you would consider a major life event, you still have wisdom and words within you that might be helpful for someone else. Your story, the narrative of your life and who you are and and how you became who you are is important. Your story matters! Continue to find the quiet, listen to your inner creative and begin to share your stories, fact or fiction, with others!

If this episode sparked something you, tell me about it! Share your story! You can contact me in any or all the ways: leave me a message here or on my Facebook author page Sarah Fenlon Falk or join the Storyteller Nation Facebook group! And if you think that I’m creating great here please consider going over to iTunes and giving an honest rating of this podcast. I always welcome honest reviews of my books on Amazon as well.

For more on the importance and intricacies of sharing stories check out this Tedx Talk...it's very touching!

That’s it for today. As always, friends, thanks for stopping by and until next time: keep in touch with your inner creative and Create Something Great!