I have recently read The Stories We Tell by Joanna Gaines, and it helped me to look at life differently. I have been watching Joanna Gaines since I was in second grade, and I wanted to be just like her when I grew up. However, I knew who she was on camera: She was a mom to five kids, married to Chip Gaines, and she loved creating a home for families. However, I didn’t know the kind of experiences she went through to get to this point in her life. I know everyone goes through hardships, but The Stories We Tell allowed me to step into her shoes and see her life. It made me start thinking about my own life. What is my story? What moments make me who I am? Do I know someone else’s story? 

My story has moments that I struggled with and other moments that made me really happy. Some things were really hard and I didn’t know if I could get through it, but I’m proud of how I overcame it. Everyone has moments that they struggle to get through, but every moment, high and low, shapes you into who you are. 

Joanna shares it took a long time to forgive those moments in her life and share them with other people. For years, she would write pages and pages with her story on it, but never really told anyone else the feelings she was going through. However, she began to put her story into a book, where she shares her story and encourages you to share yours too. She wants everyone to know, that whatever part of your life you’re in, you’re going to be okay.  This also got me thinking: What parts of someone else’s story do I know and don’t know?

We walk these halls every day, but do we really know each other? We might know someone’s name, sport, or who they are friends with. However, many people know nothing about someone they walk by, not even their name. To me, that makes me really sad that I have been with some of these people since middle school and don’t know anything about them. Many people have told me that when they were at their high school graduation, there were a lot of people who walked across the stage they didn’t know. 

I think we should all sit down with people and learn about their hobbies, family, passions, and even stories they don’t. Get to know them and allow them to get to know you too. I think you will find it will make you feel good, but it will also make the other person feel even better. 

There is someone in one of my classes that I have gotten to know parts of their story this year. We come from two different lives, but I found we have a lot more in common. We helped each other with assignments and complained about the frustrating ones. I have gotten to know some things from outside of school and she has too. We might not see eye to eye on everything or hang out outside of school, but I can say, that laughing and getting to know her has made my day better. 

We all have different journeys in life, but we can all be there for each other, no one should go through it alone. I encourage you to read The Stories We Tell and see how it changes your perspective. Find at least one person to get to know besides their name. However, your story is also really important to tell, too. Pick up a notebook and start writing each part of your story. Not every part is going to be perfect, but each part is a piece of a gigantic puzzle of life that fits perfectly for you. As Joanna says in her book, “What beautiful story is yours to tell?”