We are all made up of stories. Hundreds of stories without endings, that continuously make us who we are. The characters are our lessons... The plots are our morals... And all of the beginnings are our reckless pursuits of happiness....of self discovery...of meaning. But the last page of every story says the same thing, "To be continued..." And all of these stories are what make us relate-able and at the same time, so unique. But then I think about it...and maybe...they aren't really stories at all. Maybe they are more like sections in a dictionary. Sections that define each and every part of who we are. Information we pull from when trying to live our lives. Places of reference for the way we deal with things. And then I think....maybe they aren't really sections....but maybe more like moments. Maybe we are all made up of moments. Moments that have impacted us in such a profound way that we never let them go. Moments we hold onto and make them ever so a part of us. So much a part of us that we build our lives on each of them. Never the less, these stories without ending, sections of information, and defining moments have somehow created the person that is sitting there today... In the most exclusive and extraordinary way... A divine assignment. This is what makes us incomparable to any one else. And yet, so comparable at the same time. Sometimes, our stories overlap.... our sections are defined with similarity... our moments felt in equal value... And it just so happens, for a brief moment in time, my happiness is the same as your happiness. What made me cry has also made you cry. What makes me laugh, makes you laugh. These similarities are what create our relationships. These similarities are what connect the human race. They relate and connect us, but make it that much more obvious that we are our own individual. Because that same person that I was just laughing with....just made me feel pain. That same person that made me so mad....just made me smile. This is why it is complete ludacris to compare who you are to anyone else. It's those similar moments that make us think otherwise. But there are far more moments that aren't similar, than those that are. The things we take from these stories, sections, and moments are what define us. We all go to different places when trying to make sense of things.
Where do you go? What story do you pull from when you're weighing your happiness? Was it that day when you were 5 years old on Christmas morning? Or the love you feel on your birthday? Or the joy you felt when you were helping someone? Or the day you fell in love? Where do you go when deciding what is worthy of your happiness? What section do you refer to when you're scared as all hell? Was it that time in grade school when all the kids were mean to you? Or that day your parents yelled at you? Was it the very first person who ever judged you? or let you down? or caused you pain? Was it the standards you had to fit? What section do you go to when you're defining self-protection? What moments do you think back on when you're questioning your dreams? Was it the moment someone told you you were good enough? Was it the moment you realized you were passionate? Was it the moment you had never experienced more joy and fulfillment in your life? Which moments remind you that your dreams are more than attainable and more than worth it? Where do you go? What do you refer to? What do you think back on? We go back to these moments of impact.... That have seemingly shaped us into who we are, what we think, what we believe, how we act.... But the goal.... the divine assignment.... is learning the right stories to pull from.... the right sections to refer to.... and the right moments to hold onto.
