How the Lesson of the Hero’s Journey Can Guide Us Throughout Our Life
A review of ‘The Soulburn Talisman’ by David McIlroy
My childhood friends and I spent our summer days engaged in battle with imaginary dragons and sometimes each other. We dueled with wooden swords we’d made from stripping the branches off of saplings.
Those are some of the happiest memories of my life.
We didn’t exactly put on costumes, nevertheless, we shared a collective fantasy. Each of us carried a length of rope and a Swiss Army knife. The moment we stepped outside we ceased being little boys and became bold adventurers.
We often suffered adult rebukes for engaging in activities that were seen as frivolous or unproductive. However, I’m convinced that it was in those moments of pure imagination that I learned the most important lessons of my youth.
The blurred lines between fantasy and reality
We’d march into the woods to explore and to get dirty. We’d cross knee deep streams by leaping from stone to stone. We knew we’d draw our parent’s ire if we came home soaking wet. Yet, we were bound by our own sense of mischief to at least make an attempt at crossing the water.
