Stories

   I believe everyone has a story to tell that would be of relevance and interest to others. A story that instructs or encourages or just makes one laugh at living. My friend Laura has been in Mexico City now for several weeks. She's a performance artist and is walking Aveneda de los Insurgentes, through the heart of the city, inviting anyone to walk with her a bit and tell a story. Any story. She then posts them at Walking Stories: Mexico City. The stories can be bizarre but are mostly everyday though insightful and warm. A bridge to understanding.

   Today I was sitting our front of Backspace reading a local rag and sipping some coffee. It was a quiet, overcast afternoon, yet bright and warm. A couple guys sat next to me talking and at one point engaged me. One spoke of a man he met from China and of his idea to get a story out of him and post it to a blog. He spoke of building this bridge to understanding. Laura's blog is like that. She was there when the piggy flew and was reporting straight from the streets of Mexico City. Her actual observations tempered the ridiculous hype coming form the joke we call news. Of course there is nothing funny about some of that which is spewed form the mouths of various talking heads on the television. It is important that we live with open minds and hearts so that we are ready to see the truth when it confronts us. And I am not talking about some contrived dogma parading as truth, "only" or otherwise. Think about it. There is no shortage of religions claiming to be the path. No shortage of chains binding spirit.

   Anyway... The guys went into Backspace and came out later with a girlfriend of theirs. They were on their way to get a free meal being offered at Obryant Park and invited me to join them. Sure, I said and off we went. I didn't need the meal but was grateful for the friendship offered and yes, the meal too, which turned out to be quite generous and tasteful. There was a variety of fresh prepared dishes and deserts. There was even a queue for clothing for anyone who might need something. 

   When I leave my house to be part of the day these are the kinds of experiences I hope to have. All three of these travelers had stories to tell and today we were all part of each others story. I say go ahead and tell your story even if it's only to yourself and not in words to be read. It's like a journey of discovery at the least, and if you listen to the stories of others you'll know that you are not alone. And like life, you never know. You never know what will come of the telling, the writing, the listening, but it will come to something. Take charge of your story. Laugh, cry, get angry and let it all go. The wind is listening.