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?

Yesterday I chatted with a friend-client. I told her that I really liked her fiance. She said, “Me too! I mean I’d like him even if I wasn’t going to marry him.”

You know what? I like my husband, too. I love being around him. He’s my friend. Mark is a teacher and just finished summer school (Yippee!). That means he’s home until August. Everyday. And that makes me happy.

Not everyone is so fortunate. My mom struggled with my dad being home. Over the years of their marriage they had grown apart. For much of their married years, he worked out of state and came home occasionally. When he retired, he was home all the time. My mom had a separate life. My dad had expectations of her and didn’t know her. He didn’t (or perhaps couldn’t) see and appreciate her for who she was.

My life is so different. When Mark is home, he doesn’t seem to have high expectations of me. We just are home together. He sometimes works on projects. I work on projects. We work on projects together. At other times, one of us is “goofing off” or napping, while the other is taking care of the home or kids. 

I’m so thankful for his acceptance of me for who I am. He gives me grace, freedom and champions me. I’m grateful.

Here’s my man. I like him