The Hero's Journey

Lately, I’ve found myself thinking over and over again — I want to be inspired… I need someone to inspire me… why don’t I feel inspired?

And today (the day I began writing this), I stumbled upon my real problem on the way down a content-consumption rabbit hole. The reason I don’t feel inspired is because I’ve been asking myself what I should be doing — literally racking my brain for ideas — rather than asking myself what I want to be doing.

Woe. (That’s a pun).

And write now (another pun… don’t ask me why), when I ask myself what I want to be doing, all I hear is the eerie sound of well-intentioned crickets.

(insert imaginary cricket sounds, here).

You know how they say, you’re the main character in your own life, and everyone else is just a side character?

Well, sometimes I feel like I’m actually just a side character in everyone else’s life. And maybe I like it that way. Playing the role of side character is like being in my comfort zone. It feels safe and it feels good… until it doesn’t.

Like when I play a role in the hero’s journey of someone else. Someone who truly inspires me. Someone who makes me want to go on my own hero’s journey, and then I’m suddenly forced to face all the things that have kept me in my side roles all this time. Because going on a hero’s journey means facing your bullshit.

And when facing my own bullshit becomes too much, I convince myself that I’m already playing my own hero’s journey; and the biggest challenge that I have to face over and over, is that I don’t have a leading role. I really am just a side character.

Ouch, that hurts.

Are there really people in this world who are truly, only meant to be side characters? Is that the fate I was born into during this life? And if it is, why does it hurt so much?

I don’t actually believe this to be true. I just think that when a person is always asking themselves what they should be doing, rather than asking what they want to be doing, it can’t start to feel like their own life isn’t truly about them.

If you’re not familiar with the hero’s journey, essentially, it is a plot structure that’s used in storytelling. It is the journey or quest (literal or figurative) that the main character embarks upon to undergo the transformation needed to become who they will ultimately become. In stories, the main character overcomes their personal challenges and steps into their fullest potential. 

We’re all here to do the same thing. This is Main Character Energy. But in order to go on a hero’s journey, the main character has to answer the call. And in case you were wondering, the call comes from within. The answers lie within your heart’s desires. 

As I am righting this, (oh look, another pun!) I can feel myself moving toward inspiration, connecting with my own main character energy, and understanding what it is I want to be doing…

I want to express myself creatively. To get creative with how I create. To let the random things that pop into my head (intrusive thoughts?) find their way to the page. 

I want to share what I learn, what I intuit, what I imagine, and what I see in the world around me. I want to make art. Through my art, I want to be seen, valued, and understood. And in the process, I want to help others feel seen, valued and understood, too. 

I think this is the goal of the artist. To find powerful ways to express themselves through their art; and then to share that work of art with those who will find value in it, because they see themselves in the artwork.

Each time I sit down to write, my hope is that I understand myself a little bit better. That I see myself a little more clearly. That I express myself in a way that helps others relate, so that they, too, feel seen and understood.

When I read people’s energy, my goal is the same. Reading energy means connecting with people deeply, seeing them clearly, and giving them the opportunity to see the beauty of who they are through the things I reflect back at them. And every time I read someone else’s beautiful energy, as they are reminded of their own beauty, I am reminded of mine.

Sometimes, I pick up on things that are limiting people — cutting them off from their own inner magic, and beauty and art — just as I was feeling cut off from inspiration at the beginning of this note. We all go through phases of feeling lost from ourselves; feeling disconnected; feeling like a side character.

And if I do nothing else, my hope is to continue to find my way back to the magic and beauty and inspiration within me, so that I can continue to do my work, while helping others to do the same.

And that, I think, is where the work of my own hero’s journey truly begins. Recognizing my power as an artist, prioritizing my art above all else, and finding the courage to share it. Because that’s what my heart keeps telling me to do.

While I may not have been born into the role of “side character,” this theme is a part of my personal journey. My own transformation comes each time I decide to stop seeing myself as just a side character, and each time I let myself step into the role of Main Character in my own life. And when I feel lost, as I often do, all I have to do is listen to the whispers from my heart and choose to follow her loving direction.

And the same goes for you too.

As I’m closing out this special little note, I’m reminded of a favorite quote from a song in the 1994 retelling of Hans Christian Anderson’s Thumbelina. I hope it leaves you feeling both powerful and inspired. 

All My Love,