How do archetypes do it?  How do they feel so familiar to us and pack so much emotional, intellectual, and mythic information into our understanding of things? As Carolyn Myss, author of the new best-selling book Archetypes writes, it’s “because they are power patterns in the subconscious mind.” They are the images we identify with when we are children. What we call character is really our archetypes. They are in our DNA, and knowing yours can transform your life. So, let’s pick up where we left off. Below is a handful of H’s  for you to consider. Does one (or more than one) feel like the real you?

HOMEMAKER
You may maintain an office or be a mother like Claire Dunphy from Modern Family. However you identify, the home is your domain. Your archetypal families include the Advocate and Caregiver. Though the archetypal image you see can change with the decade and the “channel,” your personality remains the same. When you are guiding young children to grow or turning a house into a home, you are living the power that fits.

HERMIT
If this is one of your archetypes, hold off from buying into what can be a bad rap. As the comic Steven Wright told us, “Hermits have no peer pressure.” Tell that to your friends who may accuse you of becoming a Hermit because you take a few days off to be by yourself. There’s a big difference between isolating and recharging. Once upon a time the Hermit was the recluse and outcast that lived alone on the edge of town (or in the corner of the coffee shop). Your families are the Visionary and the Spiritual Seeker. Your time alone is the power that allows you to grow and keep following your path.

HERO AND HEROINE
Love this quote from Maya Angelou: “How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!”    If this archetype fits, your foundation is the Caring and Advocate families. You don’t have to be Lara Croft to be a heroine. A favorite heroine of mine was my dear Dana Reeves. Each of our lives contains plenty of suspense. Our world is filled with ordinary everyday heroes and the action heroes we love. Once in a hundred lifetimes someone is both. To me that is Superman and my sorely missed friend Chris Reeves. He said, “I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” I believe that says it all.  Ultimately, we all need to be the heroes of our own stories.

Let’s recognize and celebrate the heroes in us. Archetypes show us how to put on the cape of our own power and play the roles we have come here to play. And when we are living in our right skin, how heavenly!

With grace and gratitude,
Cristina

Cristina Carlino is the founder of Archetypes, Inc. Each week she will reveal a new letter of the Alphabet of Archetypes. Stop back often to discover parts of you you didn’t know existed!