One of the most liberating things I ever heard was a statement by motivational speaker Dr. Wayne Dyer to ‘give up your personal history’. Changing from anger to opportunity was as simple as deciding that ‘you are not your history’. You are not a victim of someone’s acts against you. You are the creator of your life. If you don’t like what you’re creating, change your thoughts, change your actions and watch your story change.
His story, her story, history is just stories. Like most stories, our history has a bit of fact, a bit of fiction and a bit of fantasy thrown in.
Some history takes effort to let go of. Especially the history of suffering and personal or collective trauma. These have deep roots that need to be given a proper burial. Unfounded fears are a good clue that we have history deep within our psyche that is preventing our growth.
Subtle intuitive nudges and urges are great clues to our buried fears.
A few years ago, I found myself travelling solo through Eastern Europe. Someone casually mentioned that the WW II concentration camp of Auschwitz was a must see in Poland. My heart immediately began racing. The next day I was on a 17 hour bus ride down to southern Poland and the main city of Krakow. From there I took another 1 hr ride to the camp.
The moment I saw the camp, I felt a coldness and a deep sadness run through me. Without fully understanding the urge to be there, I knew that my lifelong fears of incarceration, of losing my freedom and my free spirit, and the sense of being cold all the time were somehow connected to this place.
Although it was a sunny, hot day, I shivered continuously. I spent the day in a somewhat detached state of horror, as if I was seeing it this way after having experienced it from the other side, from inside a cold, bare wooden shack at Birkenau. And, I knew I had come all this way in order to forgive.
One particular spot on the grounds attracted me and I lingered there, not quite sure what to do but sure that I was in the right place. ‘Just trust, ‘I told myself.
I placed my hand on a toppled stone, closed my eyes and really, truly, forgave those who had caused such suffering. And then, I knew my sightseeing was done. I climbed back on the bus about ½ hr before departure time, not interested to see any more, enveloped by a gentle, peaceful energy.
Curiously, that event has helped my life shift to one of a greater sense of freedom and joy. I also began to shift from granola maker to writer and motivational speaker. My strongest message: every human being is unique and valuable and has unlimited potential.
A couple of years ago, I met world reknown cyclist and 7 time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong at a cancer fundraising event. He talked of how the disease had given his life a true purpose.
Upon leaving the hospital after his treatments were over, Lance’s surgeon suggested he had two choices ahead of him. A) put the whole thing behind him, don’t talk about it and carry on with his life or B) create purpose by using this battle to personify all that a human being is capable of. Lance chose B.
According to Lance, in choosing to share his story, he brought purpose and meaning to his life that went far beyond the sense of victory and accomplishment he had experienced as a cyclist. His life became about inspiring others to break self imposed limitations.
What story are you telling? Think about it.
