Strories we love stoires

You may have noticed a variation on a theme in the last few posts. Stories. We love stories. They are how we understand the world and one another. When we hear a story that is persuasive, we take notice. It lingers. It connects us. Each of us finds different aspects of a story compelling, courage, humor, resilience, kindness, and that is why I’ve tried different approaches to the themes that I thought were interesting and important over the last few days.

We all want to be the heroes or heroines of our own story, which is only natural. After all, each of us has faced moments of challenge, triumph, and change. But when we look back on our lives, we sometimes tend to tidy up the details a little. We gloss over mistakes, minimize disappointments, and rearrange events so we come out looking a bit better in the telling. That’s understandable, who wouldn’t want to highlight their proudest moments?

Still, it’s important not to change or omit too much of the narrative. The person you are today is the sum of everything that came before, both the moments when you were the hero or heroine, and those when you played a supporting role in someone else’s story. Those supporting roles, the ones that may not have seemed important at the time, often hold deep meaning for others. The friend you encouraged, the family member you forgave, the time you showed up when it mattered most, all of these moments weave together to form the full story of you. The person we are today is a result of all the events in our lives, even those where we stumbled and fell.

Your story isn’t just about what happened; it’s about what you learned, how you felt, and how you grew. It’s about how you kept going when life threw challenges your way. And it’s about what you found joy in, big or small, along the way.

Memories are more than nostalgia. They are the threads that connect generations. They help us make sense of who we were, who we are, and who we are becoming. When you share your stories, you offer your family, and the wider world, a precious gift. Your children and grandchildren want to know who you were before they knew you. They want to understand where they come from, and how your choices, values, and dreams helped shape their lives too. For your children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren, your life narrative is a precious inheritance. Your story is their origin story. In a world that moves at a dizzying pace, your stories provide them with an anchor, a sense of belonging, history, and identity that they can carry forward

Think of the stories your grandparents or parents told you, the ones that stuck with you long after the conversation ended. Maybe it was about how they met, how they got through tough times, or a funny misadventure from years gone by. These stories don’t just entertain us; they root us. They remind us that we come from people who lived fully, who loved, who persevered.

Now it’s your turn to pass that legacy on.