Most people aren't interested in the truth. They are more interested in the stories they tell themselves.
People spin stories about themselves and their relationships. They use stories to explain what's happening and why. People are awful at separating what is true from what they're telling themselves is true.
Telling yourself a story allows you to do something the truth does not. A story enables you to invent motives and assign intentions. You can imagine reasons that fit your preferred perspective.
Stories tend to protect the storyteller. The truth does not protect anyone.
It has no preference for you or me. It does not care about what happened in the past or what's at stake in the future. It does not consider emotional significance or what it means to this person or that person.
The truth simply exists.
It can be complex and often is. The truth is not always singular, black and white, right and wrong. It can hold many seeming contradictions at once. The truth can be difficult to understand and more difficult to accept.
The truth is not always objective, either—not purely. There is real, relevant truth in subjective personal experiences.
How do you navigate the thick jungles of truth and story with discipline?
Make the most important decision of your life.
Are you committed to the truth or your stories? Do you want your mind to stand on what is true or what you want to be true because it fits your story?
More on these questions and their consequences tomorrow.
Brick by brick. Do the work.
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