Some of them are old and familiar, that ground us to our past.
Some of them are about accomplishments that make us proud and give us courage.
And some of them are about hardships and trials overcome, that remind us that we can get through anything.
But we also tell other stories.
Stories that cage us in, that demand that we make the same choices again and again even though it's not in our best interest, stories that build walls instead of bridges, and don't allow us to feel the love we want to feel.
These stories sound something like this:
"No one will ever love me."
"I'll never lose weight"
"They did that to hurt me."
"I know what we are thinking when they look at me that way."
"I can never forgive them for what they did."
"I always mess things up."
"No matter what I do it never gets better."
As long as these stories live within us, we trap ourselves with them.
Because these stories control what we focus on and what information we allow to influence us.
If we say we are unloveable we don't notice the times when someone does something loving towards us.
If we say we always mess things up we act in ways that make that come true - even when we really could do better.
If we say we will never forgive someone, we keep that persons' transgression front and center even though they have apologized, changed, or it's been 20 years since the story actually happened.
The stories that we tell are powerful!
They solidify our past,
Which influences our present
Which creates our future.
As you think of the stories you tell, which one is it time to let go of?
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