The Protagonist of Your Life
Imagine standing on one side of a room. On the other side is a table with a glass of
water. Inside that water is the answer
to happiness. All you have to do is walk
across the room and drink the water. It
would be nice, wouldn’t it? Now imagine
that between you and the water is, say a fiery dragon guarding the water, enemies
throwing torches at you. This time, if
you get to actually drink the water, you are not just happy, but a hero.
These obstacles are the elements of drama. These are the elements of life. We like to believe that we can just walk
across the room and get the water. That
getting what we want should be pretty straightforward. When it’s not, we often get overwhelmed,
confused, stuck, paralyzed. We blame
ourselves, as we lose sight of the glass of water. But if you get past the dragon, or slay the
dragon, or tame the dragon, you have a deeper, more lasting sense of happiness
and pride. You are the hero. It is amazing how many people don’t even know
what their glass of water is anymore.
What will make them happy. It’s
amazing how many people know what their dragon is, harp on it, stare at it, tremble
at it, but never find a way to get by it.
But, when we watch a play or a film or read a book, we, more
often than not, know better than the main character. We know what they want or need. We see what’s standing in the way, and we
even know, much of the time, what they need to do to overcome their obstacles,
“Why doesn’t he just tell her?” Why
isn’t she honest with herself?” “Why doesn’t she just do what she really wants
to do!” We become experts at the
dissection of the human psyche. So why not strive for this clarity in our own
lives? We don’t need to go to a movie or
read a novel to get it right. This is
our life, not a dress rehearsal. We can
use the same elements of enjoying a good story, to unravel our intentions and
gain insight and perspective. We can
come to view our lives as stories that we can create. We can become conscious, quite quickly, of
our desires, what makes us happy, what is standing in our way, and how to
address these obstacles.
There are elements of our lives, certain situations, our
temperaments, people in our life, that
we can’t change. Sometimes, it is the
very glass of water that changes. After
going through a transition in our lives, we often cling to what we think will
make us happy, what we were striving for when our lives were different. With changing circumstances come changing
intentions and goals. But the story we
choose to write, within these parameters, becomes our very own unique
creation. It can be tempered with
beauty. It can be full of heroism and
pride. Despite what comes our way, we
can make peace with our obstacles, tame our dragons, and sip from our own
personal glass of happiness.
Nadine Bernard is a Board
Certified Life Coach and playwright who specializes in working with women who
are grappling with issues regarding their careers, relationships, motherhood, self-expression
and self-esteem. She uses techniques
based in coaching, acting, and psychology as she partners with women to find
clarity, fulfillment and balance as they become the heroes of their own lives. www.PersonalPlays.com
