I wanted to offer you a chance for something special today. It’s not my ordinary post because this one is more interactive if you choose it to be.
Would you like to participate in a challenge of sorts? If not, I understand, but if you’d like to learn something important about yourself, please consider joining me in writing a quick autobiography. Something that tells YOUR story. Your story, told by you.
Of course, it can take more than five minutes, but the essence of this exercise is to force you to grab the headlines of your life. To sift through what could be many years and let the prime stuff float to the top.
Here’s your chance to tell your story from your own point of view. You may wish to share it with others, but if you’d rather you can keep it to yourself.
Feel free to create your own format but try to stick with the five-minute timeframe and see what happens.
If you’d rather have some suggestions, here are some sample questions to get you started. Please feel free to substitute or add your own questions.
When and where did you arrive on this beautiful planet?
Who is your immediate family?
What effect have they had on you?
What are the most important events in your life?
What are the most fulfilling things you do during the day?
What have you accomplished during your life?
There, that’s it, unless you want to take a bit more time and consider adding a few more questions of your own.
In fairness, I’ll share some of my answers with you since I’m the one suggesting this exercise.
Personally, I found this exercise quite revealing.
I arrived in August of 1952, in Ogdensburg, New York to a wonderful set of parents and a sister who keeps track of all of my childhood memories. I owe so much to them for giving me a healthy, happy childhood. For buying me clothes, food, and providing me with a warm house to live in. And for moving us from my hometown, so that I could meet my extraordinary wife and have two spectacular children, who have brought three fabulous grandchildren into our lives. I love how my parent’s biographies led to mine, which along with my wife, link to the next generation and the next, forming a sacred continuum. I feel blessed to have my family in my life. They stretch me, give joy to me, push me in directions I didn’t think I was capable of, make me laugh, teach me things and both give and receive love.
It is really hard to choose only a few events in my life to claim as important because there are so many. I wonder how could I select only a handful? Beyond getting married, having children and being at the births of our grandchildren, getting off academic probation my Freshman year at college and not having to go to Vietnam, choosing not to go to seminary and become a minister, doing big and little things with my family, buying our house, paying for our children to go to college and saving for retirement rank right up there.
What about the most fulfilling things I do during the day? I start every morning by writing down at least five things I’m grateful for, my exercise routine, having breakfast with my wife, connecting with my children and grandchildren, writing posts and new books, walking in the sunshine, visiting my mom who turns 100 soon and connecting with friends far and wide.
And finally, what have I accomplished in my life? I have made a lot of friends, traveled to beautiful places, lived by my own moral code, shown love to others, especially my family and friends, donated to those in need, written books that will hopefully outlive me by generations and shared what I feel is the truth.
The curious thing about this autobiography was not only what I put in but what I left out. All the challenges, pain and suffering, heartache, and troubled times faded out of the picture. They just weren’t important enough to be mentioned. That says a lot to me.
I wonder what you chose to include and exclude.
I hope this was valuable to you and highlights the best of your life.
Messages For Inspiration 