Write Your Story

It’s interesting looking at life through art and creativity. It’s interesting seeing changes, but it’s also interesting to see how what you created back then still fits where you are today. I came across my collage I made a while back. I made it at a training and didn’t put too much thought into it. The directions were to just make a collage (with layers so it has dimension) about yourself. I have always lived in an anxious emotional state, but I was surprised when I came across a few quotes that I put on this collage the better part of 8 years ago. The quotes were “when the unexpected happens, you still have control” and “patience is the companion of wisdom.” Remembering back to where I was 8 years ago, I was working at an agency with kids and teens. Stories that I heard were tough, progress that I saw was amazing and the hearts that I saw embedded in the stories was what kept me going. Because in their struggles, I saw my struggles. We may identify something in our story from someone else’s story- just at different levels. These quotes rang true then, and they still ring true today even though I am in a different season of my life; the stories I hear have changed but the hearts are still brilliant.

Flashforward to today. In the story of the world, we find our story. We may not be at the epicenter of everything, but our story is still important. The “unexpected happened; we still have control” even when we don’t think we do. We have control of our actions, our thoughts, and our behaviors. We have the ability to let ourselves know when our fear-based responses are controlling our rational responses. We have the choice to stop ourselves from going down the black hole of a negative thinking pattern or going down the worm hole of the internet. Mostly we have the choice to monitor ourselves because “patience is the companion of wisdom” and we all have the ability to be wise throughout this time- if we allow ourselves. Being patient with ourselves, acknowledging our loss of control, will help us gain the wisdom we will need to shape our own stories into what we would like them to be. You are the author of your own story, your own collage, and your own story stick. The only question is: how would you want your story to look?

 

How to create a collage

Materials you will need:
a large piece of poster board or large cardstock, glue, colored paper, magazine clippings, newspaper clippings, any materials you would like to decorate with (any small knickknacks that can be glued onto a piece of cardstock or poster board).

How to make a collage:
Choose a background. You can mix and match; you can make it however you would like. For the next layer, you can start choosing the clippings or knickknacks you would like. Layer it up from there however you would want. It's your space to create what you would like to create.

 

Alternatives:
You can use a manila folder or a box. On one side you can make a collage of all the qualities that your friends see in you and on the inside all the qualities you see in yourself.