I used to think that the best way to have great stories to tell was to constantly be doing all kinds of stuff. We all know someone who seems to live seven lifetimes in one year.
That can’t be the whole recipe, though. Because
There are people who go all kinds of places, but when they talk about where they’ve been it feels more like showing off than storytelling.
Then there are people who seem to live really ordinary lives, but told through their eyes, a trip to get groceries can become the most incredible journey.
Having good stories is about more than having an eventful life. It’s about figuring out why something that happened was meaningful,
What did you discover about yourself or the world?
How are you different at the end than the beginning?
What expectations were subverted?
What is this story ultimately about?
To get to that heart, it takes more than just doing things. You also need to process them. To mine your own experiences. And if your life ends up a little too stuffed, you lose the space that’s necessary for stories to present themselves.
Our lives are full of stories, as long as our hands aren’t too full for us to notice them.
Stories Take Space