Corestory

#reverb10 – day 31 – Core story. What central story is at the core of you, and how do you share it with the world? (Bonus: Consider your reflections from this month. Look through them to discover a thread you may not have noticed until today.)(Author: Molly O’Neill)

Me: So, Core. How are you?
Core: Flabby.
Me: Uh, I was talking to Emotional Core.
Core: Oh. Sorry.
***
Emotional Core: Oh hey! Looking for me?
Me: Hey, how are you?
EC: Good, good.
Me: I wanted to ask you something.
EC: Sure, shoot.
Me: OK, so I need to know what your STORY is.
EC: My —
Me: Your story. What drives you. What makes you hum.
EC: Hum. Empathy, definitely.
Me: Empathy? OK. That’s good, I like that…
EC: Oh, I wish I could just hug the world.
Me: What?
EC: People, you know, they are just so messed up. And it’s OK that they are. They’re the ones who think it’s not OK! Everyone needs a hug.
Me: Um. Really? “Everyone needs a hug?”
EC: You don’t think so?
Me: Well I guess sometimes. Maybe. What about people who don’t like hugs?
EC: Emotional hugs!
Me: How do you —
EC: You say, “I see you. You matter. You’re OK.”
Me: Ah.
EC: No matter how awful you think you are, you’re not. You’re just you. I embrace your freak flag.
Me: Embrace…the freak….flag
EC: If everyone thought they mattered, there would be no war. People would be nice to each other.
Me: Really? You think that?
EC: Think about it. Universal acceptance. No right or wrong body shape, brain capacity or ability to knit things. No judgment based on skin colour, eye colour or sex.
Me: OK. Yeah.
EC: Are you thinking about it? Doesn’t it make sense?
Me: No, I’m thinking about something else now. I’m thinking about dinner.
EC: Right, well, along with that, the other thing that makes me hum?
Me: Yes?
EC: Exposure.
Me: Like, naked?
EC: Sort of. More like peeling back the layers. Letting the skin fall away. We are onions! Finding the common ground between all of us. We all have hearts that pump blood. We all have a story. I want to hear everyone’s story.
Me: OK. Now, how did I get a core who is such a stinking hippy. That is my next question. How?
EC: That isn’t kind.
Me: You know what? Shut up. You sound like some kind of empathy bot. “We are onions”? Nothing is black and white. The world cannot be cured with hugs. For god’s sake. There is too much at stake. People’s lives are complicated.
EC: Hey, you asked. Would you like a hug?
Me: NO! I DON’T WANT A DAMN HUG!
EC: OK. You matter.
Me: Jesus! Shut up!
***
Core: So, wanna do some crunches now?
Me: NO! I DON’T WANT TO DO SOME DAMN CRUNCHES!
Core: OK. Sorry.

Oh mah gaw, that’s 31 days, thank you #reverb10, for all the work you did. It’s been a great month. Hugs.