Storytelling and Listening

I love storytelling. I love telling my stories and I love listening to your stories. I always find common ground. 

I find storytelling to be a healing process. The process of storytelling is at best, a relational process. There is the storyteller and the listener. The listener is essential to the storytelling process. If there is no listener, there is no understanding.

"Listening, in and of itself, is healing. " - Dr. Yvonne Kaye

Listening asks us to be open, patient, and humble. We must be fully present. Turn off the cell phone, put away the shopping list, and focus on the storyteller. When we listen, we step empathetically into the life of the storyteller. And as storytellers, we seek to be understood by the listener.

This process is called unity.

As a storyteller, I open my heart and place it in your hands. I dare to believe you are listening and you want to be understood.

I dare to hope.

Tell your story

“Whoever survives a test, whatever it might be, must tell the story. That is his duty.” - Ellie Weisel

Living my life and not being able to see my beautiful special needs daughter Ashley, is an ongoing test. Throughout her life, I loved that part of my responsibility, and joy was to share her story. Now that she is no longer with us in physical form, I feel even more compelled to share her story. 

When we tell our story, and the stories of our departed loved ones, we affirm life. We affirm our lives together. We affirm the walks in her wheelchair, the days at the beach, the special moments when she touched someone’s life and the miraculous moments when she survived all the medical challenges.

When I tell her story, I am aware that my grief subsides a little and my healing continues. Telling Ashley‘s story has also been a gift to all those that listen. It is in this story sharing that we feel our deep kinship. We give others the permission to share their stories and we feel unity. 

We share moments of hope, support, faith, and compassion. 

Tell your story. 

Forgiveness

We must stop identifying with the experiences in life that have hurt. We must take the greatest risk of all - love ourselves. If we keep the pain of hurt and resentment fresh, we will keep our wounds from healing. In this condition, we will not heal. 

Forgiveness has deep rewards. The depth of forgiveness substitutes peace for resentment. Our wounds begin to heal with forgiveness and life begins anew. 

The origin of the word "forgive" means to both give and receive. To "give for". The inner experience of forgiveness is to return to the flow of life. 

The flow of giving and receiving.

Peace.

Love…

Love is more than an emotion. Love is a state of self awareness. Love is how we walk through the world. Love is how we see ourselves and how we see everyone else. We may find our love for God in a beautiful tree, a flowering garden, a loving pet, or a deep and intimate friendship. 

When we focus on loving service to others, we triumph over our selfishness. The more love we give, the more love we have to give. 

Begin your loving practice by mentally wishing others a peaceful and loving day. 

Love brings peace and joy.