What’s Your Story?
by Meta Commerse
What about the story of your people? Did you know that our stories contain treasures that can revolutionize our lives?
Some of us are busily looking for a product or a super food, something we can buy over the counter that we think will give us health and youthfulness. But, isn’t it fantasy to expect something store-bought to offer something so priceless?
What would you say if I told you that what you’re seeking is nearer than hands and feet, non-toxic, non-habit forming, does not require insurance, and free of charge?
We might think of story medicine as non-traditional, something new and trendy, when it is anything but. Our ancestors, the indigenous people who used their oral tradition, handed down their knowledge, customs and wisdom through fable, myth and story. Somewhere along the way of so-called human progress, this tradition was nearly lost.
Today, we’ve reached the end, the bottom of what our stressed-out way of life has to offer. We want what is real and true. We want to be well, so we return to what we know. Will we take the time and do the inner work that wellness requires?
When I set out in search of my story, it was 1992 and it was a mystical, undeniable sequence of events that brought me to a place of surrender. I yielded and made a commitment to heal my life. I spoke to my parents about this and, of course, imagined myself emerging victorious in short order! After all, I had complete memory, unlike some less fortunate folks I knew. How much time could this possibly take, I asked, without anything much of a clue…
And so, eagerly I began, with rolled-up sleeves. Once I started writing, I learned that my story had layers, that each layer contained surprising clues to my self-awareness.
For example, if I wrote my story chronologically, I could quickly, easily discover patterns I hadn’t recognized before. If I organized it by decade, I might better understand the social context also guiding my decisions and direction, for I grew up in a time of swift change.
Then again, and perhaps most exciting of all, if I simply wrote my most memorable stories—telling of those people, places, times, and events that had shaped me—I might find what I love best as well as what in me most needs healing. If, after all this, I find my parents’ and my grandparents stories’, I have truly struck gold!
Story Medicine is my life’s work. It’s a powerful tool, a way to recover what was lost along the bumpy road, a way to cleanse, nourish, and revive the soul. Story Medicine Asheville will offer an exciting event on Friday, May 2, 2014 at 7 p.m. at Jubilee! Community Church, 46 Wall Street, entitled “Blue to Gold: An Evening with Meta Commerse,” where I will share musical selections and read excerpts from my novel, “The Mending Time,” set to be published this summer.
Share this evening with me and learn about the healing power of story. Come, find your piece of the One Story…
Meta Commerse, M.A., M.F.A., C.W.P. is Director of Story Medicine of Asheville, a unique healing program. She is also an author, activist, and public speaker. Meta is also a professor of English and History at Haywood Community College. Her novel, The Mending Time, is forthcoming. Meta is available to speak to your group on the healing power of story and other topics of interest. Contact her on Facebook.
