I've been recently fascinated by the idea of storytelling. It's something we tend to forget as we age. Kids are always telling these wildly detailed and often embellished stories about even the simplest things. The more we grow, the more we start thinking that telling our stories is selfish and unnecessary. And because of this, our stories have less and less meaning.
In reality, our stories should mean more every day. As our lives go on, our stories become less about my trip to the zoo and more about that time my best friend told me she was having a baby or when I found out my loved one had cancer or when I did something on my bucket list that I thought I'd never do. Our stories mean something. I have realized that I began stripping the power from the things that once meant a lot to me. Some of this was due to fear of vulnerability, some of it due to a lack of self-confidence that anybody even cared to hear my story. We don't like to burden our friends and family with the things that we can hardly say out loud.
No longer, friends.
We can't afford to hide ourselves away from the ones we love. I am done with telling myself that I should be able to heal on my own. I'm done with marginalizing the fear and pain that I have endured in secret. I'm done with hiding in the dark when I have already been told time and time again, "You are loved no matter what." My Creator didn't make me to hide. I was made to live in love - boldly, joyously, and without fear.
Until this week, I thought that to really "tell" your story you had to go all out. Ellen DeGeneres (a member of my celebrity must-hug-before-I-die list) announced her sexual orientation on her television series. She didn't want to live in fear and hide who she was anymore. I thought I had to do the same (luckily I don't have my own tv show.) But that's not everyone's journey. Every story has a different nature. I have told my most personal and painful story to three people now. I thought I needed to do more but it suddenly dawned on me that I didn't have to do anything. I have given my story to those whom I trust and to those whom I needed to know.
Not all of us need to shout our stories from the mountaintop. Just the telling itself can be incredibly life-giving. I started by simply typing mine out. I shook as I did it and made myself read it several times through so I could digest what I had done. And it was amazing. Now I'm moving forward.
If you have a story inside of you, find a way to tell it. The thing about burdens is that they decrease as you share them. As one who is often on the receiving end of my loved ones' stories I can assure you, it is an honor to have that trust. Don't let yourself think you are a burden and that your story isn't worth telling. As Maya Angelou said, "There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."
Be kind to each creature, including yourself.
