Samantha Lyons

Having kids and working with kids means that I get the perk of staying up- to-date with sayings and trends. How fun? Am I right?!

Lately I have been hearing this saying: “He (or she) is the main character.”

This means that they’re the star. That they take control of their life. That they’re really living. That they’re perceived to be radiating an energy or persona of confidence and drive and control over their own life.

Maybe because I’m a teacher or an unnaturally deep thinker, I have the tendency to take this to heart, to really consider what they’re saying.

When teens say this, it’s (usually) meant as a compliment.

A way of saying- you’re it. You’re the one running the show.

That’s what got me thinking about how, in each of our lives, we most literally ARE the main character.

We are the protagonist. Our lives, the plot line. Our happiest and hardest days, the climatic moments that grip readers and viewers.

You know when you fall in love with a character?

The character is so great that you feel like you know them personally, like they’re a dear friend. You could fly to the setting of their show just to get coffee and be painfully disappointed not to see them. You even find yourself annoyed when the writer includes something in the script that would not align with what they would do.

For example, I stand by the fact that Grey’s Anatomy’s Alex Karev would have never left Seattle the way he did, and it’s not up for debate because I KNOW HIM.

We fall in love with characters because we get this incredible insight into their whole story. We see all of the background information that we are not likely to have access to in real life. We see their inner struggles, their embarrassing conversations, their failures, and their lives be completely shattered and built again.

We fall in love with the highs and lows. When our beloved characters make mistakes, we know their heart and love them anyway. We delight in their accomplishments. If you’ve ever cried watching a fictional TV show, you have been proof that we actually experience similar feelings to how we would react to hearing stories from a loved one. We are emotionally impacted and committed and involved.

Characters shed light on the best and worst of what it means to be human.

It made me think about the phrase, “You’re the main character.”

You really are.

How profound a thought.

If an audience were watching, if it were a real life, “Truman Show” style production, and you were the star- how would your audience feel?

Would they be watching you live a whole life filled with laughter and beauty and wonder? Would they see you taking chances on love and friendship and the dreams in your heart?

Or would they be… underwhelmed. Would they be screaming at their TV, “She or he would never do that.”

If you were the main character,

(and spoiler alert, you are.)

What story would you write for the one and only ever, you?

Feel free to connect with me on instagram @samanthalyonswrites