Discovery:Inventum

Over the last four or five years, I've dedicated myself to learning how to make a great story. I've read a number of the go-to books on the subject, consumed stories by both watching films and reading books/scripts, and I've written many, many short scripts. Yet, all the studying has been in vain because I think there is a major aspect I overlooked. Everyone has a story. Not necessarily something written or told, but rather, something we live. I have not actively lived my story.

(Books you should read to help you understand your story: Story, The Writer's Journey, and Wild at Heart)

Since this revelation a short time ago, I've decided I want to discover the source, the great meaning behind my own personal story. I think we are all given a purpose, and I think we all fulfill that function whether or not we desire to. Yeah, that is a tough pill to swallow if you believe we are destined to run our own lives. Some would argue it takes out the mystery of the journey, because they assume where they are right now could very well be what the end is like.

But that very state of mind could be the much needed call to adventure you long for deep in your heart. If you don't like your circumstances, perhaps you should change them. I've been disheartened by the post-college world. You are expected to get a job, maybe you change that job once or twice in your career, but otherwise, you are set for life. Prepared to go and finish. That is honorable, and I respect people who can do that. But that is not me. I need a malleable, shifting, mystery to follow in order to feel I have meaning. The unknown is so captivating to me, that I must at least attempt to lasso and gaze deep into it.

The great mystery, I think, is God's plan. We have no clue how our lives are going to end up. He knows where to set the edge just where we aren't looking. The beckoning into this sweeping mystery is often referred to as the call to adventure. It's one of those places where we may believe we have everything planned out and under control, but God has another plan.

I was going to make a short film. Something that I've desired to do for a long time now. It's no news to anyone that I wanted to do this. I'm a film major, its what I'm expected to do. Make some content, either written or visual, and use it as a stepping stone into the next tier of professionalism. The short film will have to wait. I was recently given the opportunity to hop on an airplane, travel 3,500 miles to the northwest Pacific, and become a deckhand on an Alaskan fishing boat.

(One of the boats in the fleet I'll be fishing in)

I've never fished before, let alone been to Alaska and the prospect both frightens and thrills me. It is the ultimate mystery. One of the best aspects about this journey, is my captains interest in documenting his work through video. He wants me to produce videos about the daily work of an Alaskan fishing boat.

Now, this isn't a line of work to be taken lightly, as I've been told. The hours can range from 16-24+ hour days. The work is physically strenuous; often requiring deckhands to pull nets full of a legion of fish for the above listed amount of hours, and on top of the physically demanding side, there is not a lot of room for error. The crew and captain, most likely, have been doing this work for many years. They will expect nothing less than great work 100% of the time.

The end result to working through the season can be very lucrative, but I seek something more than money. It's that journey, that discovery. In Latin, one word for discovery is inventum. I love the root word; invent. In English, it leads you to think "create." Create your discovery. Inventum. I am on the edge of this great story.

I'd like to write about my journey with reference to the concepts, ideas, and steps of story. The first Act is ready to begin. I know the stakes of the journey, at least in part. There could be even greater ones that are unforeseen by me at this moment, but that will only enrich the experience. It's a mystery, even if I know the setting is a fishing boat in Alaska. That alone holds enough of the unknown to me that it is exciting.

If you want to experience life as exciting, wrap your head around the fact that you live a story. It isn't just a mundane set of events every day. Rather, every new day can be seen as an adventure. You wake up, it's time for work. You know the setting, but the work could be very different today. Will Jack come over to my desk and give me a few stupid anecdotes about his golfing? Will my boss recognize the work I've done today? Will my computer die on me while working on an important presentation?

Everything can be a mystery. The stakes can be high. Don't allow yourself to settle for anything less than a great story. Starting at the end of this month, mine will begin by jumping on a plane to Alaska.

I hope you come back to share in my journey.