The Hope Project #2: Telling A New Story

We’re all shaped by the stories we’ve lived—the ones we’ve been told, the ones we’ve inherited, and the ones we’ve quietly repeated to ourselves for years. Some of those stories have kept us safe. Others have kept us small. And without even realizing it, we start to mistake those stories for truth. These are not facts. They’re stories. And they can be rewritten.

Transcript

Hi and welcome to week 2 of the HOPE Project Guided Audio Meditation.

I'm Mark.

Welcome to this moment.

Wherever you are,

However you've arrived,

You are exactly where you need to be.

Today,

This is a space to pause,

To breathe,

And to release.

Today,

We're making room to let go of the stories that no longer serve us and gently begin writing something new.

Take a deep breath in and exhale slowly.

Begin by noticing your body.

Notice where you're holding tension in your jaw,

Your shoulders,

Your chest.

And let yourself soften.

Let your breath settle into a natural rhythm,

In and out.

You don't need to do anything perfectly.

You're allowed to simply be here.

Now in your mind's eye,

Imagine you're standing at the edge of a path.

You've been carrying an old book in your hands.

It's heavy,

Familiar.

It's filled with stories,

Some true,

Some false,

Some inherited.

And you're ready to look inside.

Slowly open this book.

Look.

See the lines written there.

Maybe you recognize some of them.

I always mess this up.

I'm too much.

I'm not the kind of person who gets to be happy.

Don't judge.

Just notice.

Let your breath stay soft.

This book has been with you for a long time,

But you are not the book.

You are the author.

Now,

One by one,

Begin to gently turn the pages.

As you do,

You might whisper to yourself,

This story is not mine.

This belief is no longer true.

I am allowed to let this go.

With each breath,

Feel the weight of the book get lighter.

Now,

Imagine a blank page.

Clean,

Open,

Full of possibility.

You pick up a pen,

Your own pen,

And you write something new.

A single sentence that's more honest,

More kind,

More hopeful.

It might be,

I'm allowed to begin again.

My story is not over.

I am becoming something beautiful.

Feel those words settle into your body.

Let them echo in your mind.

Breathe them in.

As we close this meditation,

I'll say a few simple truths.

Let them wash over you like water.

You can repeat them silently if you'd like.

I release the old story.

I am the author of my life.

I trust in the next chapter.

I am allowed to grow,

To hope,

To heal.

My new story begins now.

Take one last deep breath in.

Hold it,

And exhale.

You are safe.

You are free.