WHAT CAN A STORY DO?

Because it replicates a value system, a narrative creates and maintains a reality. We operate under the influence of numerous levels of story—including familial, cultural, and religious—that define our roles and assumptions, determine the nature of our relationships, and shape our sense of self and purpose. Together, these narratives form our worldview. 

The dominant worldview of western industrial civilization sees humans as separate from, and above, Nature, which is commodified for use. This idea that human wellbeing can be considered apart from the health of the planet is obviously not functional—we’re facing a global polycrisis of interdependent environmental and social issues; 7 of the 9 critical interconnected planetary processes that keep Earth habitable for humans have now been breached. 

But if we are embedded in a dysfunctional worldview and shaped by certain lines of thinking, how do we change our minds? We can’t just jump the old mode into a new context.

The stories from the stars come in the form of a journey, and also as allegory. The role of metaphorical language is to foster a new sense of relatedness and engagement in the meaning-making process.

The Greek and Latin origins of the word “metaphor” mean to “carry over” or “to bear across.” Metaphorical language can help us bridge the gap between the known and the barely imagined, that has yet to be reached.