So, why would I do this?

Why?

It’s the question that drives parents nuts.  Clean your room.  WHY?  Eat your vegetables? WHY? (And it leads you to realize that “because” is a great answer.)

I’m just guessing, but “Why?” is probably the most-asked question in life. And if we aren’t asking the question aloud, we are probably thinking about it at some level.

It comes out in questions such as: “Why am I here?  Why did this happen? Why did God allow this to happen?  Why do people treat me that way? Why do I feel angry, or happy, or alone, or sad… Well, you get the point. Why?”

“Why?” is a big question to answer when it comes to what I’m writing here at ReigniteMyStory.com.  Why does this matter?

It begins with the story and I’ve worked with stories for most of my life. My jobs have included sharing the stories of others, the stories of companies, the story of Jesus and his followers.  Our stories are deep and personal. They can be motivating and transforming. 

Yet, the reality is that we live in a world with so many stories that drag us down. If you don’t believe me, watch the news for an hour today.   

On a side note, I was sitting in the waiting room of the service department at the car dealership recently.  I was the first arrival and so I turned on one of the sports talk shows I watch in the morning.  Another guy walked in later and sat near me.  He asked if he could change the channel and I said, “Sure.”  But, he told me, “What you are watching is too happy.  I need to watch some dark and depressing news.”

So, stories can bring both light and dark, happiness and sadness, celebration and grieving.  Our stories can help us to grow or they can hold us back.

Donald Miller is one of my favorite authors and I read his book, Blue Like Jazz, at a point in my life when it just connected with me.  Miller says this about our life stories: “When something happens to you, you have two choices in how to deal with it. You can either get bitter, or get better.”

For me, I’m choosing, even when it is difficult, to shoot for the better story.  Just like writing, there are days when the better story simply flows out and there are other days when it will be a struggle just to type a couple words.  A life story is definitely about the journey AND the destination.

In some ways, this site is going to parallel some of the places I am going in my journey.  I’ve experienced resets and renewal and redemption.  My adult life has involved a cycle related to depression and anxiety and, in writing, I’m getting a chance to address and, maybe, break that cycle.  At the end of the day, it gives me a chance to make some sense out of what I’ve lived and experienced.  Maybe someone else will connect with or identify with it.

That’s what I’m hoping that it can do for you too. If you think about a reset in your own life, if you seek renewal, or if you want to find a way to take events you have experienced and find a way to use them to help others, then I hope this site will give you a chance to do that.  At the very least, maybe, this site will help you to begin that internal conversation.

I also plan to give you a chance to hear some stories from those who have experienced resets, renewals and redemption in their lives.  Maybe we can find some ways to connect all of our stories together.

I’m in this process for the long haul and there are some things that I’m considering as I answer the “why” for me in doing this site.

• Is there a way to create a set of tools that can help us see our lives in a new way and claim the reset, renewal and redemption for ourselves?  Is there a way to share those tools with you and with others?
• Is there a way we can work, even when it is hard, to choose the better over the bitter?
• Why do we work toward a better life story and how does that help to make the life stories better for those around us?

That’s really just where my mind has been on this lately and it’s what I’m working toward as I do this site.  Thank you for being a part of the journey to a better story.