By Amaya Gayle Gregory
Sedna, AZ — This world excels at corrupting the mind. The programming, and there is nothing but programming here, conscious and unconscious, leads us to think we’ve got the answer when no answer is possible. If we believe in a side, our side, if we are aligned with one version against another, we aren’t a threat to the programming. We are hardly a blip on the radar screen.
If our programming keeps us involved, engaged, or agitated, we’ve already lost sight of the plot and are unlikely to see through the ruse. We are characters wandering through wonderland, or hell, depending on the contents of the current experience.
Is there a master plan to keep us in the dark? I don’t think so. It just seems to work that way most of the time. We get glimpses but we quickly dismiss them. Nah. That can’t be real. Whoa! That’s not possible … and so we dive back in.
Whether we call it real life or fantasy, there’s not a lot of difference.
They are simply dissimilar stories that we get caught up in. Have you ever noticed how easy it is to be completely drawn into the drama on the screen, how your pulse speeds up and your stomach fills with anxiety? You’ve picked a side and you’re in it, right beside your potion of choice.
Did you cheer on Harry, Hermione and Ron or were you holding out hope that Voldemort would bring an end to the trio of friends? Did you secretly applaud the way he who shall not be named intimidated people, his ruthlessness, his bent towards cruelty or were you happy when the heroes won?
What is it about the hero’s journey that draws us in anyway?
How about Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas, Frodo and Sam? Were you in their corner or were you rooting for Saruman, hoping the orcs would clobber the heroes, that Sauron would win the day and with his evil, turn it into night? Did you clap, or silently curse when Aragorn was crowned and peace reigned?
How do you suppose we can see good and evil on the big screen, but not on our own world stage?
Perhaps you were a closeted fan of Vader and wanted to see the empire take it to the rebellion. Did you cry as Leia died, when Han reappeared to Kylo Ren just when he needed it, or when Luke found his release in transcendence, or did your heart clutch when goodness won again?
Maybe you got confused with all the fake news and think up is down and sideways is straight. Light or dark, I’m guessing you think you are on the right side of history, that you stand with the heroes in this story too. Who knows. Maybe you do. It is a story after all and you’re the storyteller.
Have you noticed that right and wrong, good and bad are stories too, that what you cheer for depends on your storybook, on the wealth of stories that have been spun like gold (or tin) into your life story?
If that wasn’t so, if there really was a definable decipherable right and a wrong, how could people hold totally different ideas of who’s good and who’s bad? Do you think it is as simple as stupidity and they are, and you aren’t?
Playing your role, believing it’s real, saying your lines, improvising at times, isn’t a lot different than standing outside of the story where you can see it for what it is.
Both are stories, just different. One is more painful, raining pain down on you and the world. You know that one. You feel it whether you admit it or not. The other is less painful, but not because it’s better or right. It’s just not a story of hate and harm, of anger and suffering, of self-protection and competition. It’s a different kind of story, one of kindness and compassion, of authenticity and love, of curiosity and wonder.
You’re the storyteller. Even when you’re the victim, you’re still telling a story. It’s a story about a victim, about a world that is not kind. When you are happy, you’re simply telling a different story, a happy story. Habit directs the storyline and it’s a poor excuse for misery. Your story is not written. It’s being written moment by moment, line by line.
What characters did you root for? Which ones gave you reason to smile, made tears well up in your eyes, and brought you to the edge of your seat as you cheered them on? You may not know it yet, but their story is your story.
You’re telling your story. You are writing it one breath at a time. Words and meaning matter and you are the word master. No one else will tell your story. Tell it like you want to live it.
Amaya Gayle is the author of 6 books, the latest Actuality; infinity at play, published by New Saram Press. https://amzn.to/3Rd4CTY