| | “The counsel of Gandalf was not founded on foreknowledge of safety, for himself or for others.
There are some things that it is better to begin than to refuse, even though the end may be dark.”
~ Aragorn, The Lord of The Rings ~ |
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| Are you feeling it? It’s okay if you are.
The disorientation…
The confusion…
The upset…
The fear…
It’s really okay.
It’s actually good, I believe.
It means that you’re at the threshold of a Truth.
A part of you feels called to step through it because you kinda already know that one or more of the narratives you’ve been listening to, believing, repeating, or even living is simply not making sense, feeling right, or creating the outcomes promised or imagined.
And the other part of you is willing roots to grow out of the bottom of your feet, so that you never have to step into the unknown of, “If that’s not true, then what is?”
This is actually your brain working exactly as it should.
One part longing for growth and expansion into your potential.
The other deciding that safety of the known map is a better option.
The only real problem is that we don’t have a culture or education system that helps us learn how to, as my favorite psychologist often says, keep one foot in Order and the other in Chaos because it’s where we are the most alive and primed for growth and meaning.
This brings us to the next two principles and skills I learned via the classical training model, which we’ll take one at a time here.
Engaging Other Narratives: Opposing Perspectives and Devil’s Advocates
If I hadn’t been forced by the classic training curriculum, I wouldn’t have looked outside the FAITH STORY I was given.
It was the single thread that wove my STORY OF ME and my STORY OF THE WORLD, and so I had a lot to lose.
My brain worked overtime to keep me safe from completely unraveling while the facilitators offered me one sacred text and question after another that challenged what I had been told for eighteen years:
Our FAITH STORY is right, and everyone else’s is wrong… or worse.
These were some of the smartest folks I’d ever met, sounding like a four-year-old that wouldn’t quit with the WHY question and drives you mad and makes you want to scream, “BECAUSE I SAID SO!”
They presented other FAITH STORY options to me and asked me to learn the tenets well enough to be able to argue their cases.
I hadn’t even learned how to argue the tenets of mine!
So, I got to learn them.
Those in favor. Those opposed.
All at the same time.
All with a beginner’s mind and curiosity.
Oh, and a brain that was doubling down to keep me safe.
And that’s when the blinders really began to fall away.
Which brings me to the next principle and skill…
Engaging Other Narratives: Familiar Patterns and New Propositions
I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
So many of the sacred texts and faith stories I had been told were untrue actually had a whole lot more in common than not.
Across the years, I came to see familiar patterns and narratives in many of the origin and faith stories from around the world: creators and created, proverbial wrestling matches between divinity and humanity, floods, saviors, and more.
The experience of widening my lens and seeing these patterns served to reveal universal truths and deepen my faith in those.
And with every new proposition, I had the opportunity to vet which ones had the best records of first hand knowledge and worked inside this bigger universally-true STORY that was forming.
This approach of exploring and allowing the Truth to emerge and expand what was already known to me by experience did a few things. It:
- empowered me to truly own my beliefs and narratives because I, myself, had explored and vetted them in a space with mentors and allies who would sharpen my thinking at every turn
- established a life-long commitment to curiosity, so that when I engaged even more expansive ideas about my own ability to co-create my story years later (law of attraction, quantum physics, etc.), I knew how to go about it without completely unraveling my life
- enabled me to engage and sift through opposing social and political narratives, instead of simply following the stories I was given or whatever was getting the most airtime
So, now back to OUR current narratives.
We’ve got less than two weeks before we get to participate in making a decision that could mark a new start or the end of our country.
And if you’re scratching your head, wondering which “side” I’m on based on what I just wrote, that’s simply evidence that both sides are using similar scripts to accomplish very different ends.
That’s why my final Worthy of Truth installment next week will be focused on a few intuitive and instinctual approaches to determining which: - side is telling the Truth…
- narrative is the one you should trust…
- leader is the one who will work for us…
For now, I dare you to take one step through the threshold this week—one step toward making your narrative and your decision truly, honestly, responsibly yours.
Explore the Opposing Narrative: Watch a few news channels or social media platforms that you have refused to watch before,
and pay attention to the people, policies, and plans.
Look for the Patterns and New Propositions: While you’re watching, note anything you see in common
with what you normally see/hear/believe. (scripts, promises, actions, and more)
Then, note everything that is a
new/unique proposition/characteristic. (scripts, promises, actions, and more)
Deep breaths, I know.
I believe in us.
Let’s get to the Truth because it is true that It sets us free.
And I don’t know about you, but I really want FREEDOM... inside me and for all of us.
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| | Committed to Saving Stories with You, |
| | Founder | The Story Oracle
Co-Founder | Saved By Story Publishing
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