The Power of Story and Myth
The past twenty-five years I have grown in appreciation and love of the power of story. As a child, I loved the stories of Narnia especially as they opened my imagination and filled me with images of creates talking which seemed so magical. Another story I loved was called, Hurry Up, Slowpoke. I discovered it again in my parent’s home a number of years ago and have a cherished copy of it close to me. This book, which is about a mother mouse and her children, Simon and Lucy, are going to Grandmother’s house for cake. But, Simon is a dawdler. “Hurry up Simon!” is the main theme at the beginning – until, Simon gets lost behind. Will he make it to Grandmother’s house? Well, with the help of some amazing animal friends, he is able to float across the lake on Lucy’s forgotten hat, while Lucy and their mother walk the respectable path all the way
around.
To Simon’s surprise, he finds himself at Grandmother’s house right on time and gets the first bit of cake. It is a delicious story (in more ways than one) for a child who is a dawdler – and that was me. Dreamy! Imaginative! Getting lost in worlds of talking animals! Could there be hope for creatures like Simon? Like me? I think this story planted a little seed in my heart that I would find a way through life, even if it was on a different path than many.
The myth of Psyche is another profound story that I have learned as an adult. It is an ancient tale filled with Greek gods and goddesses connected in a history of mythology. Robert Johnson, in his book, She, focuses in on the story where Psyche must complete four tasks. The challenge of these tasks profound illumination for us on a personal and collective level in times of despondency, overwhelm, and challenge. These tasks are powerful metaphors in the experiences of: facing insurmountable odds, seeking grounding during times of challenge, being receptive to wisdom when we are in the dark, and finally, finding courage to know what is ours to do in daunting circumstances.
This myth holds great lessons for the times we are in, offering a pathway of through and beyond our despondency, overwhelm, and challenge. This myth can provide wisdom in how to respond in our current political landscape as well as in our personal lives.
We are living in some pretty crazy times and the other night I too, was hit with overwhelm. Being in overwhelm is like an ocean wave that is rising up before one’s eyes and there is no place to go. Panic can seem like a pretty good option in those moments! As the overwhelm hit me, I remembered the myth of Psyche. This myth was all about facing overwhelm. Impossible odds. Challenging tasks. I went back to the story and it encouraged me. What did Psyche do when faced with such challenge? Well, first she fell to the floor and wanted to die! “It’s too hard! I can’t!” I had to laugh as I recalled her reactions. But, when she stayed present even when overwhelmed, she experienced incredible help in unexpected ways. I wondered, how might we call for help? How might we be attentive to the unexpected gifts in moments where we don’t know what to do?
We are all living a story. We do not know how this story will end. But I believe we can call for help. I believe there are unexpected gifts of wisdom if we are awake and present and do not lose heart.
One of the most common phrases that Jesus said was, “be not afraid.” What if we lived with courage, hope, possibility, and an openness for wisdom even in very challenging times?
I invite you to join me to explore more about the myth of Psyche this summer as we do a deeper dive into this story! Find out more here.
