Writing our stories…
Do all our stories have the same beginning and end? Is it
always a continuum from birth to death? Isn’t it possible to think of it in a
different way?
The opening lines of Graham Greene’s book, ‘The End of The
Affair’:
‘A story has no beginning or end; arbitrarily one chooses
from which to look back or from which to look ahead.’
The above lines by Graham have helped put the idea of the
story of our lives in a better perspective for me. Imagine our life as a
library of books of different genres. There are tragic tales and comic tales.
There’s non-fiction and some fiction too. Our lives are full of stories about
people and places. If only we had the ability to keep one exclusive of the
other as they are stacked in a library. The we took choose to re-read ones we
like and forget about the bad, uninspiring ones.
The confusion and chaos in our lives stems from the mixing
up of story-lines and in our assumption that our whole life, from birth to
death is one single story.
I think we must all learn to put aside some stories of our
lives that bring us heart-ache and disappointment. While stories that bring
hope and put a smile on our faces might be cherished like the ‘chicken Soup for
the Soul’series.
Let’s look at our life’s anthology of stories and strive to
arbitrarily choose ‘which to look back’ and ‘which to look ahead’. Happiness
and peace in our lives depends upon our ability to make the right choices. Let
go of that friend who over a period of time has become a nag. Let go of that
colleague who always brings your morale down. Move from the apartment that you
don’t feel excited to go back to at the end of a long day. Move from the city
that fails to inspire you anymore.
With a little effort we can write new stories in our lives
all the time. Make new beginnings by taking ‘the road less travelled’, which
could ‘make all the difference’. Taking risks, making new acquaintances,
striking new friendships, moving to new places and learning new things are all
ways to make a new start, which means writing a new story of your life. So,
don’t settle for a mediocre story-line. Start writing your story for the better
by playing the role of an active director who has a strong say in the way the
story unfolds. Make sure you are the hero of your story. Be prepared to tackle
every villain that comes your way based on experiences from your past stories.
A successful story is all about well-chosen characters who
play their roles well and a befitting setting for the story to unfold. The choice
to begin writing a new story in your life always lies within you. Make that
choice when your life becomes boring and meaningless.