Tell Your Life Story; It’s Good for the Soul

Posted on | September 14, 2009 |

One of the things I’ve come to appreciate is that whenever we tell our life story (and I don’t mean just blurting out a few details to a stranger about how we feel we’ve been mistreated) then we are forced to reassess important aspects of who we are.

This is best accomplished when we write things down. Why is that? Simply because when we write we usually manage to slow down our minds a little, enough to notice just exactly what it is we really are saying. When we talk the words all too often fly out of our mouths before we’re quite aware of what we’re doing. And often we can’t recall what we’ve said exactly. That’s not a problem when we write it down. We can return to those words and ask if we really mean it the way we’ve written it. Possibly there is another perspective available. Perhaps we were feeling caught up in the emotions and now, with a second look, we can say there’s more behind the words than we expected. Did I really feel that way? It would seem so - here are the words to prove it.

And that asks us to consider whether this was the only way we we could feel about this event. Perhaps there are other choices. We don’t necessarily have to be angry, or sad, or like a victim. What we felt then may not be a permanent state.

Asking such questions opens up possibilities for us to gain more wisdom about ourselves and how we react. It opens us up to ourselves.

And that is the essence of soul work.

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3 Responses to “Tell Your Life Story; It’s Good for the Soul”

Sara Letourneau
September 21st, 2009 @ 2:25 am

You know, that’s all very true. And it’s also interesting when you are doing the “opposite” - writing about someone else’s life. I’m working on a biography of sorts for my great-great aunt who is 91 years old and still has vivid memories of her life and wits that are as sharp as tacks. Her perspective on things, the way she’s continued on with her life despite all the tragedies and challenges… It makes you re-evaluate your own life and wonder how you can apply some of what this other person has learned or experienced to your own life.

Also, I think the act of writing about another person’s life is initially difficult. You have those butterflies while you’re wondering whether you’re doing this person justice. Yet, once you get into their character and know what aspects of their persona you want to capture, you almost don’t realize how smoothly it starts to flow.

Oops, I went slightly off-topic. But as always, it’s a pleasure to read your thoughts here!
sonya
October 4th, 2009 @ 5:51 pm

Great philosophy, deep thinking I always knew these deep down but never expressed in this simple wayy or say style. Cant thank you enough for sharing these thoughts in a book, I love it love it love it.God bless wow inspired me so much. Sonya
Allan Hunter
October 5th, 2009 @ 12:18 pm

Thanks so much for your comments, Sonya. The whole Memoir-Writing road has had a lot of resonance for all sorts of people, so I’m delighted you feel inspired! It is a remarkable way to move forward in one’s life. Of course it doesn’t fit everyone’s needs exactly, but it does work for many of us!

With a smile, Allan

Allan Hunter

Tell Your Life Story; It’s Good for the Soul

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