Old Storyline? Turn a New Page!

It’s spring again, a new season and time to turn a new page. Turning a page, turning over a new leaf, starting fresh brings up so many great spring like feelings, like hope, anticipation and looking forward to not only something new but something better and healthier…a change. Spring time does have that feeling of a clean slate for many and highlights an innate need our spirits have to always bring on the new. So it’s the beginning of May and I’m all for not only turning a page or beginning a new chapter but writing a whole new story, the old stories that continue to recirculate like old newspapers definitely have that musty out of date smell.

I confess I feel I have had a head start on this one as I have spent much time over this past winter identifying what exactly the old stories are for me. I learned also upon pondering those old stories that they were the ones that have always kept me stuck. Stuck in a rut like that feeling you can have re-reading the same line over and over again in a book that no matter how hard you try to get into, it can’t seem to hold your interest. In my memory those kind of novels were the ones assigned in my grade 10 literature class by a school teacher who hadn’t a clue what kind of story was one that was right for me.

Those old true stories can sure run deep, so deep in fact that they feel like they are a part of your very skin. Well I’m here to tell you that that old familiar story is not a part of you and that old familiar tale if there long enough may feel comfortable and known but it is not you, it’s only your story or possibly even someone else’s story that was told to you enough times or told convincingly enough that you actually bought the rights to the book put your name on it and called it your own.

Some stories are quite the story and the more embellished and dramatic the better. Telling them over again is a seductive trap with the bait being the attention of a sympathetic and captive audience. I caution you however there is a danger in retelling these stories, the downfall being that they will become deeper and deeper imprinted and embedded in you with each retell. So do yourself a favour and be vigilant about what stories you are telling or sharing with others around you. Is it a story that is uplifting or is it a drama or even worse a tragedy? If it’s a story that you’d rather not keep repeating then DON’T repeat it to anyone. Simply notice it as an old story or a new version of an old story and not worth repeating and note to self that it is one that is currently being edited, soon to be replaced by a fresh new edition with a positive twist ending.

Now what would your new story be? Can you imagine if the sad old story had a brand new ending? What would that ending be? Can you imagine being the victor in this story and not the long-suffering victim? Or how about a plot twist? What if the perpetrator or long time foe in your story turned out to be actually an ally or a friend? Or a whole new cast of characters may appear more in line with the new story line that you are writing!

A shift in perspective starts with you thinking differently and then doing it differently, try a new approach and execute a new outcome. And be aware of the magnetic pull of that old story because it will be tempting to want to renew the subscription. It will take dedication to writing a new story with yourself as a believable new character and letting the old one die. It may not happen overnight and you may feel discouraged at first but keep at it, with perseverance I promise you new stories will start to emerge and these new stories will reflect a change, a change in the way you think about and see the world and yourself  in it. As the saying goes be the change you want to see. Happy  Spring!