What's the Story of Your Life?
What's the Story of Your Life?
Doing the work to unlock the message you've earned from your journey is beyond difficult, but it's life-changing to discover the story you are here to share).
“And somewhere on your path to glory
You will write your story of a life”— Harry Chapin
Wearing a t-shirt and jeans, John Gimenez stood in front of us sharing the story of his life. A journey from heroin addiction to recovery, and the discovery of a commitment to help others avoid the pain he’d experienced.
Riveting. Heart-wrenching. Intense.
Especially for a 10-year old boy who suddenly found himself enthralled, giving someone else his full attention, perhaps for the first time in his brief life.
That was my first exposure to the story of someone’s life being shared. Unbeknownst to me at the time, that moment was pivotal in my life story.
Throughout my adolescence and early teens, stories became my escape, my safe place, my retreat. I eagerly awaited the bi-weekly arrival of ‘The Bookmobile’ in our tiny country community. A Winnebago transformed into a traveling library with the adult books on one side and the children’s on the other.
Every other Wednesday just before 11:00 a.m. I mounted my banana seat bike and sat at the end of the driveway watching and waiting. As soon as I caught a glimpse I raced down the road to be the first one in the door, quickly choosing the six books I’d get to ‘devour’ for the next two weeks.
Then I’d race back home and dive into the stories between the covers. Escaping from the world outside, transplanting myself into the messages. Wondering how and why the writer knew these stories, pondering writing how I might write my ‘Story of a Life’ someday …
For those who love lyrics as I do, here are the complete lyrics.
I tried.
Many times.
In fact, I discovered journaling because I was seeking a way to write a story that would be read by others. Pouring my thoughts onto the blank pages of notebook paper I’d loaded into an old binder. Envisioning a young boy reading it as he began to dive into stories and explore the lives of others. Wondering if I could somehow help him escape from the pain he was experiencing and didn’t know how to share.
Over the years I made many false starts, trying to unlock the meaning from my life experiences. Seeking to understand how they shaped me. Why they happened. Why they impacted me the way they did. What they really meant.
I was looking for the ‘John Giminez Lessons’ within my journey.
The cautionary tales that would help others avoid pitfalls and navigate obstacles. The celebratory moments that could shine a light on the path someone else needed to travel to reveal their talents. The thought-provoking insights that stimulated their thinking and led them to commit to taking the first step toward their destiny.
High hopes? Big dreams? Indeed.
But I’ve come to believe the reason we are all here is to do the work to unlock the lessons we have earned from our journey. No, that’s not a typo — we don’t learn them, we earn them as we navigate our own rivers of life and experience moments that change us. Moments that will reveal meaning only if we allow them to speak.
Let me stop there for now. We’ll touch on this concept often as we move forward. For now, I just wanted to start you thinking about your journey and the story of your life.
Start with this question: What’s the stuff you’ve locked away and left unprocessed?
It’s not going to be an easy question to answer, and it will likely take some time, both to identify what it is and to confront it with the intent of mining the lessons earned. But it’s worth it. When I allowed myself to do that work, my life changed forever. And that part of my journey was the most fulfilling and worthwhile thing I’ve ever done.
P.S. There’s a good chance you’re reading this because it’s the right time for you to begin writing your story. And maybe as you’ve read you found yourself thinking of someone you know who needs this message right now. If that happened, would you be so kind as to help them out by sharing this post on social media or via e-mail? I would be grateful if you did as I never know who these missives are really intended for when they come through me.