Stories

Have you ever had one of those periods in your life where something, some idea, thought, word, or concept, just keeps showing up? No matter where you are, who you talk to, what you read or listen to, there it is, so obvious you couldn’t miss it if you tried? So apparent it is bordering on annoying? So consistent it leaves you wondering what could possibly be going on?

For the last three weeks, the notion of “stories”, the stories we tell ourselves, the stories others tell us, the stories that connect us, and all the stories in between, has been top of mind. Though not by choice.

This awareness of stories started with a quote a dear friend sent me, moved along to a podcast I listened to, turned up in a book I was reading, then presented itself, uninvited I might add, in a blog post I was writing. I thought that would be the end . . . but no, the “stories” kept coming. I knew I must be missing something.

The constant barrage made me think of the famous Anne Morrow Lindbergh quote:

We have so little faith in the ebb and flow of life, of love, of relationships. We leap at the flow of the tide and resist in terror its ebb.

I wasn’t sure if my story events were ebbing or flowing. I was just trying to go with the flow. I was explaining this current oddity to a friend who made the comment that I must be in a growth spurt. Growth spurt? Yes indeed, short periods of time when you experience quick growth. I liked that idea.

I had no sooner settled into the idea of my growth spurt when another story presented itself– The Alabaster Tablet of Laylah. A Google search led me to this:

Laylah is a guardian angel watching over all transitions.

The Angel Laylah heralds from Talmudic scriptures. Unlike any other angel. She is specifically described as a feminine being. Laylah is a reminder that there is a place only the feminine can fill. If we attempt to live our lives skewed toward the masculine, we will miss out. The feminine tendencies toward compassion, acceptance, kindness and mercy are a balancing necessity.

Laylah allows the way to be shown, rather than directing a path based on current perspectives.

I have a friend, a professional writer, who always reminds me that every story must have a beginning, a middle, and an end. The end of my ‘story’ growth spurt came with the discovery of the story of The Angel Laylah:

Allow the way to be shown, rather than directing a path based on your current perspective.

And just like that, I knew this was my story.

—Robin