"Restitution stories attempt to outdistance mortality by rendering illness transitory. Chaos stories are sucked into the undertow of illness and the disasters that attend it. Quest stories meet suffering head on; they accept illness and seek to use it. Illness is the occasion of a journey that becomes a quest...Quest stories have at least three facets: memoir, manifesto, and automythology. (the ability to create a larger than life persona for oneself)"
Reading this capsulized my experience as I skimmed both books yesterday at the various points in the day. it also helped me realize that I do my best thinking early in the day. It is before 7 a.m. and I have had a good night's rest. The distractions of the day fade from view and I can hear little street noise other than the sound of a few cars leaving their parked spaces and the birds that are singing.
I create, think and feel better in the early morning though I never thought that would be something I would feel. It is where I believe anything is possible. Sleep is the ultimate reflective practice. Often I go to sleep with a question in my mind purposely, and ask my subconscious to find the answer. Sometimes I dream an answer. Other times I wake up with a clear understanding of the question I asked and how to tackle it in the new day. Some days I just have anew thought about the question. I have never been unsuccessful with sleep reflection.
This book is becoming a metaphor for my life; a resource guide to why I am reacting in the ways I am currently, and how I will advance my work by understanding that.