The Silver Bullet

I recently heard Glennon Doyle interview Brandi Carlile on her We Can Do Hard Things podcast. Glennon had a question for Brandi about a song on her newest Album In These Silent Days. The song is "Mama Werewolf", and she had a specific question about the following lyrics:

"If my good intentions go running wild

If I cause you pain, my own sweet child

Won't you promise me you'll be the one

My silver bullet in the gun"

Glennon wanted to know if the song and these specific lyrics were a metaphor about ending trauma in your family of origin. Specifically she asked, "So are you saying there that if you do any of the hurtful shit that your family of origin passed down, that you want your kid to be the one to snuff it out of you, whatever it takes?" 

Brandi said yes, yes exactly. The silver bullet doesn't kill the wolf, what it does is ends the curse of the wolf being the werewolf, and mama werewolf is asking the child to do that... end the curse if they see the pain that's being passed down. 

I'm not sure if previous generations weren't aware of it, or if they just didn't talk about it, but our generation seems to be so aware and more enlightened about the prevalence of ancestral, generational, and family trauma. We now know that patterns, pain and trauma will be passed from generation to generation until someone becomes aware and steps up to heal it. We're starting to realize that we are the ones who are being called to heal the stuff from our family of origin, so we don't continue to pass it down the line and so it doesn't continue to haunt us and impact our lives. 

The person who steps up to do the work and heal the wound is the one carrying the gun with the silver bullet. They're not ruining or shaming the family, they're simply ending the curse so the family system can go forward and evolve without carrying on the trauma and pain. In fact, our ancestors want us to heal the wound for the whole family, and they support us as we do the work. 

Don't get me wrong, awareness is HUGE. Without awareness, it would be impossible to see the pain that needs healing in the first place. But awareness alone doesn't always bring healing. I said our ancestors support us as we do the work, and the healing can be work. 

If you decide to be the one with the silver bullet in the gun, if you decide to end the family trauma and be the one who changes the course of fate for the family system, let me tell you this: what you're doing is amazing, and it's truly changing your lineage -- past, present and future lineage. 

As someone who has done a lot of personal family healing in my own system, and who specializes in this work, I will also tell you this -- make sure you have support. This work is potent and powerful, and going through anything of this magnitude can often feel more manageable when you have the support and guidance of someone who's already walked that path. 

Whether your family system is carrying patterns, behaviors, beliefs, values, habits, secrets, trauma, or any other kind of pain that you don't want to see passed down the line, remember that YOU are that right person to be the silver bullet and break the curse. Why not you? And if you need a guide on your quest to break the curse, I've got your back.