What narrative do we tell ourselves as we live the story of our life?
As
writers, our books tell a story or cover a subject in a very defined and
concrete way. When we promote ourselves and the books we’ve published, we use
another narrative to lure the media and consumers in. We paint a picture of the world and who we
are, and push such a narrative in hopes of getting a desired response. All of that is planned and designed. But what is our narrative for life itself?
What
do we tell ourselves to get us through the day? What story do we buy into that
motivates us to act one way over another?
What value or issue or experience or circumstance do we allow to define
who we are and to dictate our actions? It’s one thing to use your imagination
to create a world, it’s another to live in reality, in a world with true
choices and substantial consequences.
I
wonder if writers live a life different from most, simply because they see the
world differently, and immerse themselves in questions over answers, fantasy
over facts, and speculation over what actually is or was.
I
warn you, I don’t have an answer to my own headline. I’m not even sure what my narrative is.
Writers
are compelled to write. Perhaps we’re
born this way, gifted and cursed at age one.
Maybe to be a writer is a choice, but it seems to be chosen when one
reacts to their circumstances.
Writers
always see how things could be better, or at least different, the way a home
decorator can envision 20 different floor and wall pattern combinations that
would each be perfect for a specific space.
I find I’m always wondering: “What if things were different?”
I
look at something that’s flawed, weak, or lacking and imagine if one thing were
changed, added, or removed, how it would then be better and wonderful. I also look at the strong, the powerful, the
perfect, and often wonder if their weak points were exposed or attacked, how that
would relegate them to a much lower, less invincible status.
I think of opposites and I think of possibilities probabilities, and the unknowns. The puzzle of life is manipulated in my head and I suddenly see different realities, each alternative competing for attention. How can I dictate terms and circumstances to bend to my will? How can I blend in to what’s not movable or changeable? It’s as if when I talk to someone or see something, I see them or it in all of its stages and phases – where it is, where it’s been, where it could be.
I think of opposites and I think of possibilities probabilities, and the unknowns. The puzzle of life is manipulated in my head and I suddenly see different realities, each alternative competing for attention. How can I dictate terms and circumstances to bend to my will? How can I blend in to what’s not movable or changeable? It’s as if when I talk to someone or see something, I see them or it in all of its stages and phases – where it is, where it’s been, where it could be.
My
narrative skews this way:
·
To
be optimistic but cautious.
·
To
be ever curious about people and things.
·
To
take human nature into consideration of any decision.
·
To
seek answers but know that some questions can’t yet be answered.
·
To
live in the moment but to have a bigger perspective on life.
·
That
common sense, truth, and love should win out over ignorance, politics, greed or
insanity.
I
write because I search for truth as much as I hope to share what that truth is,
should I uncover it. I write, not to
dictate how things should be, but to explore how they could be. I write to
question what is, but not to destroy it, just to affirm it.
What’s
your narrative, as a writer and human being?
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