What will survive of us is love – life story writing

“It may be that we are only here to learn how to love,” muses Maria Popova. She revisits the 1969 book The Unexpected Universe, by palaeontologist and poet Loren Eiseley.

In 1969 Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon, the Woodstock music festival happened, and David Bowie’s song Space Oddity was released.   

“The venture into space is meaningless unless it coincides with a certain interior expansion, an ever-growing universe within, to correspond with the far flight of the galaxies our telescopes follow from without… That inward world… can be more volatile and mobile, more terrible and impoverished, yet withal more ennobling in its self-consciousness, than the universe that gave it birth,” writes Eiseley.

Popova suggests that if love is the highest expression of human awareness, and consciousness itself one of the universe’s greatest achievements, then we must accept that the universe will always remain larger than the mind it has produced. In this light, love—at its deepest and widest—is not an act of control or certainty, but a conscious willingness to yield, to meet the unknown with openness, humility, and trust in the mystery that can never be fully grasped.

IT MAY BE THAT WE ARE ONLY HERE TO LEARN HOW TO LOVE

The self, or our perception of ourselves, is not fixed – it is ever-shifting and moving. And our study of ourselves bring awareness.

“It is the self - the prison of it, the illusion of it - that keeps us trapped in lives of less-than-love. But a self is a story, which means we can always change the story to change, to dismantle, to be set free from the self — and it might not even require a bloody face,” says Popova.

THE EXAMINING OF OUR LIFE STORIES

As humans we have the freedom to define and redefine ourselves, and one of the ways in which we do is through the examination of our life stories.

“You’ve got to tell the world how to treat you [because] if the world tells you how you are going to be treated, you are in trouble,” said James Baldwin in a conversation with Margaret Mead.

DEFINE YOUR OWN LIFE STORY

Not allowing yourself to be defined by others is an act of self-respect and spiritual courage, and writing your life story is one of the most powerful ways to claim that ground. When we absorb the projections, fears, or limitations placed upon us, we quietly hand over authorship of our own lives. As James Baldwin warned, if you do not speak for yourself, the world will speak for you - often in ways that are distorted, partial, or shaped by someone else’s wounds. Writing your story is a refusal to let cynicism or misunderstanding become your destiny. By naming your experiences in your own words, you protect your inner freedom and create space for dignity, healing, and hope.

WHAT WILL SURVIVE OF US IS LOVE

Love your life, love the examining of it and above all, love is what will survive of us. Contact me to assist you with writing your memoir or life story -