They say sharing your story, your journey with others can be a very powerful experience. Life takes us through innumerable ups and downs and we all end up stronger from it. Even psychology today has proved that sharing your stories with others has many benefits—I will talk of the top four here:
One, realising that sharing your story can help others.
Stories can be very healing and many people benefit from getting the opportunity to pass on their wisdom to others. This can be especially powerful for people who do not always feel that they have the chance to help others.
Two, stories help us in finding our voice.
Learning how to express yourself and learning how to think about what has happened in your life in a way that makes sense. Developing and organising your story helps to think about how the various events—even the bad ones—have been part of a journey towards the person you want to become.
Three, telling our story helps us reaffirm our values.
Sometimes you learn things about yourself from the act of writing or storytelling. It can be a way to clarify what is important, pausing to tell your story can be a good reminder of your priorities.
Four, finding peace, finding hope.
People who have found their voice, shared their story, and reaffirmed their values often find a sense of peace and a hopefulness that they did not have before.
There are many other benefits of sharing your stories such as bringing a smile to someone’s face, if the story is funny, sharing a life-changing idea if the story is innovative, so on and so forth. Based on this spirit, we at Indian Weekender are proud to introduce the Kiwi Indian Thought series. The participants don't just stand to gain cash prizes for sharing their thoughts with everyone but also from all the benefits I have recounted above. Besides this is the prestigious platform at which you could be invited to share your story—the Auckland Diwali Festival.
I would urge all our readers, especially our youth, to participate in this. Please refer to the details of the competition in this issue.
Festivities are in the air and with great joy I would like to wish all our readers a heartfelt Eid Mubarak! May this celebration of the spirit of sacrifice help spread the message of peace, brotherhood, and togetherness across the world.
It was heartening to hear about the Turban Day initiative that has taken place. This helps people from other cultures understand the values and significance of Sikhism. It is only through sharing that we get the opportunity to learn, then understand and hence become more tolerant to other cultures in a multicultural country such as ours.
Here’s hoping the season of festivities continues to ring in celebrations and togetherness. Until next time.
-Giri Gupta