I've never truly realized how big of a factor storytelling was in my life until I had to take a class about it. Going in, I thought that a storytelling class was going to be a pretty surface level, Dr. Seuss group reading type of class. How wrong I was. I had no idea that so much went into the art of storytelling. The many parts that make up a story, the tones, the purposes. All of that was hidden in plain sight, not making an appearance until you truly were to open your eyes and perceive what was given to you. Going into my first story, I didn't really feel too confident. I had to rely a little bit on a piece of paper in front of me, rather than memorizing and creating that movie inside of my head as I told it. However, onto my second story, I felt I had grown more confident and seamless in the telling of my stories. Of course, it was about something I was passionate about, so it had to be a bit easier for me. It was about Metallica.
I started off my story with an attempt at humor, addressing Metallica as a "little-known band" that you "may or may not have heard of.” The funny introduction, however, did not reflect the story I was about to tell. You see, the story I was about to tell was about James Hetfield, the front man of Metallica.
But before we can get into that, let's dive into how I even got into Metallica. Why did I care so much? Metallica and I had a rocky relationship at first. Whenever I heard them play, I thought it was just a band of nobodies whose prime was way long ago. I even got a little bit annoyed about how many people claimed to like their music, until one day, I chose to finally give in and see what all the hype was about. As I listened and perused their albums, dating back to the 1980's, I found myself relating to their music. I found that I could often find a little chapter of my life in some of the songs they wrote. There were many times when I felt like I was just *FADE(ing) TO BLACK* on repeat, not really knowing who I was or where I was going. It spoke to me, it awakened me, I guess you can say. Since then, I have been hooked. They're pretty much my most streamed band of all time.
So, as I was digging deeper into their music, I decided to look beyond Metallica and its music, I wanted to look at the characters. As I dug and dug, I found some trauma, an incident, and a scourge upon the band's name. It was Cliff's death, what followed after, and James' worsening alcohol addiction. Morbid things such as this were compelling to me, it was *THE THING THAT SHOULD NOT BE*.
So I decided to tell my second and most confident story to date about James' experience because it was inspiring. I also definitely think that everyone, if they are human, can relate to it. A vice of everyone's choosing, consuming their life, forcing them to succumb to their desires, knowing it spelt the end for them. For sin promises death. Everyone at one time in life was a puppet, and everyone has had to face the *MASTER OF PUPPETS*.
James’ story is more than just music, it's about pain, rebellion, healing. At one point, his life was like being *TRAPPED UNDER ICE*, unable to break free from the weight of his own addictions. Every day was a battle to escape the inner voices that whispered, *NOTHING ELSE MATTERS*. He was consumed by the bottle in his hand. But he didn’t stay there. He fought. He sought help. And that moment when he surrendered, when he let go of his pride and turned from self-destruction, it was the day he finally found *THE UNFORGIVEN* part of himself and made peace with it.
That’s why I chose to tell his story. Because in many ways, it mirrors ours. Whether it's addiction, pride, fear, or sin, we all have our own *RIDE THE LIGHTNING* moments. But like James, we don’t have to be defined by the fire, we can be refined by it. What better way to share those defining moments than by sharing them with others?
(Phrases in all caps are Metallica songs!)
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