In the First Person

Here is a lovely first person essay by a Waver I'll call "M" about the power and the healing writing has provided in his life:

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Stories are the salve that soothes the wounds of the world.

As the child of lost-in-the-bottle alcoholics, my sole escape from a home of heartbreak was through breathless reverence of my favorite characters as they overcame both inner pain and outer obstacles.

I drew strength from their courage and hope from a hero's ability to rise above and discovered real empowerment by expressing my own story as wild adventures through times of darkness to triumph.

But as I grew older and more overwhelmed by life's tricky path, I began to lose sight of the light that had guided my way - my love of stories, and how creating them made my life better.

Nicholson was right; sometimes you can't handle the truth, at least not without help. A kind writer named Terry (thank you, Mr. Rossio) turned my eyes toward the starry-eyed trap opening far below me.

I stopped writing for five years to prevent my fall.

When I came back, I came back strong for one reason; I rediscovered my love of story. How it shapes us. Binds us. Heals us, through joy and laughter and tears. If we do it right, through all of these!

Story flows through my blood again, and I could no more stop its course than I could give up breathing. Every day I can fashion a world from words is another day I can create in a world of decay.
Sharing the wonder of well-told tales by mastering the process of crafting them is my keen interest, because the healing we receive from stories that uplift and sustain hope even as the world's weight cracks the rafters above us proves that great stories mean something.

My goal is simple - to write stories that help others feel as I do.

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Thank you, M, that was a beautiful piece of writing. If you would like to submit a short first person essay to the Rouge Wave - about anything, really - contact me HERE.

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