A story

I have a story. You have a story. We all have a story. At some point, we tell our stories to others. Without being conscious of it, we are each telling our stories to ourselves all the time.

What is my story?
Why do I tell my story to myself?
Does my story serve a purpose?
Does my story work for me anymore?

When we are storytelling, we are creating our lives, and reinforcing our memories. We are also coloring our present and future experiences. This is often a good and useful thing to do. But what about when we have, perhaps, outgrown our story? How do we know when it is time to shed our old story, and "write" a new one?

Who Loves You?

When I am getting down on myself, and thinking negative thoughts, I yearn for a quick fix for this; but the fact is that such thought patterns do not disappear that easily. Each time a negative thought pops up (i.e. that I notice its appearance), I cast about for a solution, a way out of the darkness, so to speak.
Not long ago, I was reminded about The Work, of Byron Katie. (Others have adapted her teachings to their own messages. Specifically, I heard Wayne Dyer use the basic principles in his latest "No Excuses" teaching.) As a matter of fact, I had the opportunity to hear a lecture by Byron Katie some fifteen or more years ago in Boston. At the time, she seemed kind of "out there" and, to be brutally frank, a bit on the flaky side, but not in a bad way. Anyway, she laid out her plan for dealing with any negative thought, as follows....it's meant to be reflection, not an active changing of your thoughts so much as an awareness and acceptance of them as an avenue to a change.
Any thought you have that is troublesome can be met with the four questions: "Is it true? Can you absolutely know it is true? How do you react, what happens, when you believe that thought? Who would you be without that thought?"
Next, you "turn it around" - think the opposite of the original thought, and provide yourself at least three examples. Finally, you "embrace reality" which entails opening your mind and heart to all experience without fear. All of this is supposed to get you to a new state of awareness about your negative thinking.
Every thought we have also contains its opposite, as surely as light and dark exist in one another. For example, if I am angry at someone, inside that must always be some anger that already existed in me. This is not about blame, but about acknowledging the truth within.

With God, all things are possible.

With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.
With God, all things are possible.

Now and again, when darkness surrounds you, and there seems to be no viable solution to the situation, it is good to remember:

With God, all things are possible.

It is not always possible to know the solution to your problem. It is not always possible to share your troubles with others, or to allow others to help you. It is not always possible to sustain faith in the midst of the darkness. The one thing that is certain, irrefutable, and unchanging:

With God, all things are possible.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. "With God, all things are possible" is the State Motto of Ohio.