7.1.21 // the wrong story

Another beautiful writing prompt from a distant yet dear friend.
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"Prompt: if you find yourself in the wrong story, leave."
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I had to write about this...
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1- I've lived this countless times in the last several years. 2- To leave is hard and while I want to simplify it, it deserves a conversation.
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"You shouldn't wear red lipstick Liz, it sends the wrong message." This was the moment I knew the story I was in back in 2019 was the wrong story and I needed to leave.
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I rarely talk about this particular part of my life because this story was, a huge mistake in my memories. But, this storyline is an excellent example of leaving. For context, I found myself in a relationship that moved too fast and blindly. Too quickly, I found myself living in Germany with a controlling "partner" that I had uprooted my life for. But, that story had a plotline I could not continue and it was obvious. I felt like I was being torn away from my own being each day I stayed in Germany and endured similar comments.
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I was scared of what others would think when I came home with my tail between my legs, but I realized that once I decided to leave, I wouldn't be returning like that at all. I was proud, I made a choice to take a risk and it failed (miserably) but I learned and I lived.
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This is not to say that all decisions to leave a storyline will be as obvious and as easy as that one.
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There have been harder moments and other decisions to leave in my personal plot that still weigh heavy on my heart. Sometimes those choices linger in my mind with the curiosity of "what if I had stayed" but I don't indulge those thoughts. Every decision I've made for my plot has created a story I'm proud of and we know deep down if we are in the wrong story.
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I'll leave you with this: we aren't just the main characters of our story. We are the writers, the directors, the casting crew, the set designers, the wardrobe team. We get to make this beautiful story OURS and we have the power of control to leave a storyline that needs re-writing or a new ending. We have the power of potential for endless life stories!