Your Story Matters

This brief post is the about the power of relationships.

At 3:40 this morning – not able to fall back asleep – I went online and watched this video. It challenged me. Watch it and then I’ll tell you why.

(a note to women: the video says it’s about men but it’s about women, too. Stay open.)

(if you can’t see the video, watch it here)

One of my struggles in life is with letting myself draw close to others – even with my family. I tend to fill my life with busyness. These days I’m seeing that often I do that as a way to stay distant.  To be fair (to me), part of that is personality. I’m part introvert and gain strength from distance and solitude.  The other part, though, is self-protection. I think self  protection at times (but not always) is a sin. It’s selfishly motivated to keep my heart feeling safe from others and even God. It doesn’t work and it’s a lie.

We were designed for relationship…intimate relationship. It’s in my DNA (it’s in your DNA) to have genuine, close relationships with God, other people (a trusted few), and with our own person. I don’t think it’s possible to grow, to become who we were made to be or to reach our potential apart from close healthy relationships with God, others and self. The more I distance myself, the more my heart stays hard in places…the more I stay stuck. I need these relationships to help me live a better story.

This video reminded me of that.

Who might you gather around you to inspire a life of significance?

Nic Askew, from the The Possibility of Men

>>find out more about this video…visit www.soulbiographies.com/2011/01/the-possibility-of-men

Your turn….what do you think of the video? What does it make you think about?

My “three words” goals this week to help me live a better story…

Art: Read about Vincent van Gogh from at least one source. I’ve been intrigued by this artist ever since I was a kid. That’s his “Starry Night Over the Rhone“ in the banner image above.  I saw it and many others by him when we traveled to France two summers ago. We also visited many of the locations where he actually painted. I want to learn more about him…to get “in his head” a bit.

Health: Drink at least 32 oz of water each day. I’m so busy during the day at work that I usually don’t drink enough water. This week I’ll fill up my 32 oz bottle and keep it on my desk. My sister jump started her weight loss by drinking more water – maybe I’ll do the same.

Stillness: Write my “morning pages” at least 4 days this week. In the Artist’ s Way and on her website, Julia Cameron says,

In order to retrieve your creativity, you need to find it. I ask you to do this by an apparently pointless process I call the morning pages…Morning Pages are three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness writing, done first thing in the morning. There is no wrong way to do Morning Pages– they are not high art. They are about anything and everything that crosses your mind– and they are for your eyes only.

I’m trying to keep it simple. I think the path to living a better story is taken by baby steps.

Be Art-Full.  Be Healthy.  Be Still.

Do you have any goals or hopes for this week?

Last Summer, I had the wonderful opportunity to speak at my church’s women’s retreat. Each session started with these words:

I want you to know that things are not as they seem. There is a Larger Story where God is the Author and He is the Hero. It is a story where we matter more than we realize and there is a Villain. And, yes, someday there will even be a happily ever after.

This week, a friend showed me a creative, somewhat disturbing music video. It’s about the Villain of our story and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. The video was created by  The Arrows; it’s posted below. I’m certain it will make you think so please share your thoughts.  Also,  since it does have some brief startling images, you probably should preview it before showing kids.

Here’s the chorus just in case you missed it:

And still I don’t tell you
About the God in heaven
Who loves you
Who yearns for you
No I don’t tell you
About the freedom of forgiveness and truth
Why would I tell you?
Why would I tell you the truth?

So, what do you think?

>>Curious about the Larger Story? click here

My focus for the New Year

I enjoy the beginning of the year. It’s like a fresh page full of possibility. I used to make resolutions but I’ve never been good at following through with them. That’s partly because I don’t like to feel pressured to do something and I naturally rebel againist rules. Resolutions feel like pressure and rules to me.

This year after reading about Chris Brogan’s 3 words, I felt inspired to choose 3 words to help focus my 2011. My 3 words for this year? Art. Health. Stillness.

• Art: Visiting Rome, Provence and Paris in 2009 gave me a new appreciation of art. I had never been so immersed in it and I felt more alive. This year, I want to learn about it and absorb it as much as I can. I feel like such a late bloomer in this area. It seems to me that art has a language. I want to learn that language. This year I hope to be more “art-full“.
• Health: I want to choose health not just physically but emotionally, spiritually, mentally and relationally as well. As I encounter daily opportunities, I want to ask myself, “In this situation, what is healthy?”.  I don’t think this will be black and white. In it’s purist sense, this is about boundaries.  I,  by the way, naturally rebel against bondaries, too. I know all too well, though,  that without them I’m like a goldfish out of the bowl – sucking air. So,  this year, I hope to be healthy.
• Stillness: Being still implies rest, quiet, meditation, prayer….stopping. I want less busyness and mindless distraction and more of just being. You’ve heard the line, “wherever you are, be there”. That’s what I’m going for this year and letting myself stop enough to feel pain and discomfort. That’s the path to healing and to the Healer. This year I hope to be still.

Be Art-Full.  Be Healthy.  Be Still.

What are your 3 words?