The metaphor of life is a figurative, artistic representation by a picture of a vision of one’s life, one’s feeling from the events taking place in life. An internal picture of life, expressed by external means — a picture, movement or sounds. In this article, we primarily used drawings with which people reflect their life metaphors.
What is the point of looking for a metaphor for life? Having understood, felt, drawn and formulated your metaphor of life, it is easier to realize how meaningful, strong, high-quality, etc. our or someone else’s life is.
For example, if a person says: “My life reminds me of a donkey that day by day sadly walks in circles and turns the wheel to pump water”, then it is not difficult to understand and feel his inner state: dullness and boredom from the monotony of seemingly necessary things. What the donkey does is what people need, on the other hand, it is monotonous and boring↑.
What kind of people are such and metaphors. What metaphors — such is life. Metaphor is an accurate gauge of what is happening in your life. It is important.
If the driver is driving a steam locomotive, but he does not have a gauge showing the pressure in the boilers, this is a risky journey. If you are driving in a car and do not look at the gauge showing whether there is gasoline in the tank, this is a controversial trip.
A metaphor is that inner sensitive sensor that will tell you very accurately about you, whether you have a reserve of strength or whether you are working at the limit, whether you are on the rise or in decline, in struggle or defense, what you want and what you are afraid of, your life is meaningful. Or the meaning is lost…
What is your life like? What picture, what metaphor could you describe your life, your feelings about how you live? What is it: climbing a difficult peak? A squirrel in a wheel, running in circles at ever-increasing speed? Walking in the fog?↑
If you are familiar with deciphering the metaphors of life, you will quickly and deeply understand your condition. In addition, if you understand the meaning of all the details of your metaphor, you can use it to shape the way you want to live.
For example, I imagine my life as a large intercontinental sea liner that sails at full steam from one continent to another. A modern and durable ship that is not afraid of storms and calm, fog and ice. A white liner, equipped with modern equipment and richly decorated, on which there are many cheerful people. A ship run by a well-coordinated and professional team that pleasantly surprises and impresses.
What metaphor would you use to describe your life? Attention: 1) Do not confuse a metaphor with a dream: a dream is a realistic image of the life you dream about, and a metaphor is a figurative way of describing a situation, a figurative comparison that helps to see new meanings through a picture. A sketch of a particular life situation that you like, for example, is not a metaphor. “I want a girl — smart, beautiful and decent” is a dream, and “A girl is a beautiful flower for which the sun rises” is a metaphor. 2) Life is movement, so the LIFE metaphor is a reflection of your movement, your path. What metaphor would you use to reflect exactly the MOVEMENT of you through life: you walk, fly, swim, run, fall, climb …?
It will be interesting if you first describe what was born on its own, as a reflection of today’s reality, and what you decided to refine so that the new metaphor becomes richer and more efficient in organizing your life. Working with the metaphor of life is one of the simplest, deepest and most effective ways to work with the internal structure of a person. This is not only an express way to see your present day, it is also an accessible and intuitive way to shape your future, your values and goals.