Ink & Purpose: đ What If Wonder Is the Missing Ingredient in Every Great Story?
Awe doesnât just open our eyes. It opens our heartsâand points them toward action.
Previously in Ink & PurposeâŚ
In The Sacred Ordinary, we honored the courage it takes to simply stayâto keep showing up even when no one is clapping, and when the journey feels heavier than the strength we have left.
Today, we lift our eyes to something even larger: aweâthe sacred spark that humbles us, connects us, and calls us to action. Wonder doesnât just move us... it transforms us.
đ That Moment You Canât Explain
I remember standing on a mountainside onceâhigh above the tree line, where the wind whistles secrets, and the clouds press their palms against your face like some kind of blessing.
There was snow.
Silence.
Sky.
Nothing flashy.
Just light catching on untouched white.
The kind of light that makes you feel like the world is older, deeper, and somehow⌠aware that youâre standing in it.
I stopped walking.
Stopped breathing, I think.
Because everything in me went still.
And in that moment, something shifted.
Not a voice. Not a vision. Just this unspoken knowing:
I am small⌠and this is sacred.
It wasnât fear.
It was awe.
That trembling, beautiful sense that youâre standing inside something bigger than you.
That youâve brushed up against mystery.
And it saw you back.
Iâve felt it in nature.
Iâve felt it in music.
And more than onceâIâve felt it in fiction.
Reading a sentence that cracked something open in my chest.
Watching a character do something so selfless it hurt.
Reaching the end of a story and realizingâI wasnât the same person I was when I started it.
Awe doesnât just stun us.
It changes us.
It wakes us up to beauty.
To truth.
To pain that isnât oursâand to people weâve never met.
It makes us want to be better.
So hereâs a question Iâve been sitting with lately:
What if awe isnât decoration⌠but a doorway to heroism?
What if that sense of wonder is where courage begins?
Because maybe before we can choose to stand up for othersâ
We have to first remember that weâre part of something worth standing for.
đ§ Awe and the Brain â The Science of Transformation
Awe isnât just a feelingâitâs a neural event that reshapes how we see ourselves and the world.
When we encounter something vastâlike a star-filled sky, a powerful story, or an act of profound kindnessâour brain responds in remarkable ways.
đ§ The Default Mode Network (DMN) and Self-Transcendence
The Default Mode Network (DMN) is one of the most active regions of the brain when weâre not focused on the outside world. Itâs the part of us that lights up when weâre reflecting on ourselvesâour plans, regrets, status, anxieties, or what others think of us.
In many ways, the DMN is the âme centerâ of the mind.
Itâs where our inner narrator livesâthe constant hum of âWhat does this mean for me?â
But something remarkable happens when we experience awe.
Whether youâre standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon, hearing a piece of music that moves you to tears, or watching a character in a story do something unspeakably kind or braveâŚ
Your DMN goes quiet.
Instead of being absorbed in yourself, awe deactivates the DMN and activates regions associated with external attention, spatial awareness, and emotional regulation.
In plain terms:
Awe pulls us out of ourselvesâso we can connect to something beyond ourselves.
This is why people often describe moments of awe with phrases like:
âI felt so smallâbut in a good way.â
âTime stopped.â
âI forgot about myself completely.â
Itâs not about erasing who we are.
Itâs about expanding the lens.
Feeling deeply part of something vast⌠and meaningful.
đ Supporting Research:
âAwe, the Small Self, and Prosocial Behaviorâ â Piff et al. (2015)
This study demonstrates that awe reduces self-focus and increases willingness to help others.
đ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25984788/âNeural Correlates of the Awe Experienceâ â Takano & Nomura (2019)
Researchers used fMRI to show that awe decreases DMN activity while increasing external awareness and social cognition.
đ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6766853/Greater Good Science Center â âThe Science of Aweâ White Paper (Keltner & Haidt)
Explores the mechanisms and benefits of awe, including its ability to shrink the ego and open the heart to prosocial impulses.
đ https://ggsc.berkeley.edu/images/uploads/GGSC-JTF_White_Paper-Awe_FINAL.pdfâThe Neuroscience and Health Benefits of Awe and Wonderâ â Nuvance Health
Outlines how awe calms the nervous system and improves cognitive and emotional well-being.
đ https://www.nuvancehealth.org/health-tips-and-news/the-neuroscience-and-health-benefits-of-awe-and-wonder
đ The âSmall Selfâ and Prosocial Behavior
In the moment of aweâwhen weâre faced with something vast, beautiful, or deeply movingâsomething shifts inside us.
Psychologists Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt, both pioneers in the study of awe, describe it like this:
Awe arises when we encounter something so vast that it challenges our understanding of the worldâsomething that forces us to accommodate our mental framework.
This isnât just about seeing something âcoolâ or impressive.
Itâs about being humbled in the best possible way.
Thatâs where the âsmall selfâ phenomenon comes in.
Rather than boosting the ego, awe does the opposite.
It shrinks the self-focus of the mind.
And in that shrinking, we actually grow.
We become:
More aware of others
More empathetic to those around us
More inclined to act with kindness, generosity, and moral courage
In fact, multiple studies show that people who experience awe are significantly more likely to:
Help a stranger
Donate money or time
Cooperate in group settings
Make ethical decisions, even at personal cost
Why?
Because awe relocates us in the story.
It reminds us weâre part of something larger.
It reminds us we belong to each other.
Fiction taps into this same psychological mechanism.
When a young reader walks beside a hero through struggle or sacrifice, awe isn't just feltâitâs internalized. And itâs that wonderâat bravery, beauty, or heartbreakâthat makes them want to rise themselves.
Awe is not passive.
It leads to action.
đ Supporting Research:
Piff, Paul K. et al. (2015) â âAwe, the Small Self, and Prosocial Behaviorâ
This landmark study shows that awe reduces focus on the self and increases helping behavior.
đ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25984788/Keltner, D., & Haidt, J. (2003) â âApproaching awe, a moral, spiritual, and aesthetic emotionâ
Foundational paper on awe as a transformative social emotion.
đ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/10626707_Approaching_Awe_A_Moral_Spiritual_and_Aesthetic_EmotionGreater Good Science Center â White Paper on Awe
Summarizes dozens of awe-related studies, including the âsmall selfâ effect and its influence on cooperation and kindness.
đ https://ggsc.berkeley.edu/images/uploads/GGSC-JTF_White_Paper-Awe_FINAL.pdfâThe Science of Aweâ â National Geographic Article by Amanda Ripley
A digestible breakdown of the psychological and social effects of awe.
đ https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/how-awe-drives-human-behavior-feature
𧏠Aweâs Impact on Health and Well-being
Awe isnât just good for the soulâitâs medicine for the mind and body.
Experiencing awe has been shown to trigger a cascade of positive physiological responses. In fact, researchers now recognize awe as one of the most health-enhancing emotions we can experience.
When we encounter awe, the body releases endorphins, oxytocin, and dopamineâthe very same neurochemicals associated with joy, connection, and emotional bonding.
But hereâs where it gets even more fascinating:
Awe also reduces levels of cortisol, the hormone most commonly associated with stress, anxiety, and inflammation.
That means moments of wonderâwhether from nature, music, story, or sacred silenceâcan literally:
Lower blood pressure
Improve heart rate variability
Strengthen the immune system
Reduce chronic inflammation
Support long-term mental clarity
đ§ââď¸ Awe as a Neural Reset Button
Studies using EEG and fMRI imaging have shown that awe dampens overactive stress patterns in the brain, while lighting up areas associated with creativity, problem-solving, and reflective thought.
This emotional "reset" allows us to step outside our survival mode and reconnect to higher-order thinking, imagination, and moral reasoning.
And this is exactly why fiction is such a powerful delivery system for awe.
A single passage.
A moment of sacrifice.
A sunset described so vividly it catches in your throatâŚ
These moments slow the world down just enough for healing to begin.
Not as escape.
But as restoration.
Awe quiets the noiseâso we can hear what actually matters.
đ Supporting Research (with full URLs):
Stellar, Jennifer E. et al. â âPositive Affect and Markers of Inflammationâ (2015)
Found that experiences of awe were linked with lower levels of proinflammatory cytokines.
đ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26035037/Haidt, Jonathan â âElevation and Awe: Evoked by Beauty, Sustained by Meaningâ (2013)
Explores aweâs connection to well-being and moral elevation.
đ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259458066_Elevation_and_Awe_Evoked_by_Beauty_Sustained_by_MeaningKeltner, Dacher â Greater Good Science Center â âThe Science of Aweâ
Summarizes empirical evidence on how awe contributes to health, prosociality, and perspective shifts.
đ https://ggsc.berkeley.edu/images/uploads/GGSC-JTF_White_Paper-Awe_FINAL.pdfâThe Neuroscience and Health Benefits of Awe and Wonderâ â Nuvance Health (2022)
Popular summary of medical and psychological benefits of awe.
đ https://www.nuvancehealth.org/health-tips-and-news/the-neuroscience-and-health-benefits-of-awe-and-wonder
â¤ď¸ Moral Imagination and the Heroâs Heart
Before any heroic act⌠there is a moment of vision.
Not action.
Not instinct.
But imagination.
Someone has to see the possibility of doing goodâ
before they can choose it.
And awe is the emotion that cracks that door open.
When we experience aweâwhether through a story, a piece of art, a strangerâs sacrifice, or the vastness of natureâit stretches our internal landscape. It lifts our chin.
Suddenly, weâre not just thinking about ourselves.
Weâre thinking about something bigger.
About whatâs right.
About who we might become.
Thatâs moral imagination.
The ability to picture an action that serves someone other than ourselvesâ
and believe we could step into it.
đ§ According to developmental psychologists, moral imagination is foundational to prosocial behavior and empathy.
Itâs the ability to mentally simulate:
Standing up for someone else
Speaking truth at a cost
Showing kindness in the face of cruelty
Forgiving what feels unforgivable
This ability doesnât come out of nowhere.
It must be formed. Exercised. Fed.
And thatâs where fiction comes in.
Fiction is not just entertainment.
It is a training ground for the soul.
When we read about characters who suffer⌠who choose mercy⌠who love through loss⌠weâre not just watching. Weâre rehearsing.
Weâre walking those roads in our mindsâlaying the neural groundwork for what we might choose when the moment comes.
Because sometimes the only thing standing between someone and a heroic actâŚ
is whether theyâve imagined it before.
Think of the first time you read about someone choosing sacrifice over safety.
Or the first time a character laid down power for love.
That awe you felt? That tightness in your chest?
That was your heart training itself to care deeply.
To act boldly.
To choose right when the stakes are real.
And thatâs why children need stories more than ever.
Not just to escapeâŚ
But to practice.
They need to see flawed people rise.
They need to feel the weight of a hard decision.
They need to walk with characters who choose the hard roadâand survive it.
Because someday, they may stand at a crossroads themselves.
And when they doâŚ
Their imagination might be the only thing that tells them:
âYouâve been here before. And you can do this.â
đŚ¸ââď¸ Zimbardoâs Shift: From Evil to Heroic Imagination
In 1971, psychologist Dr. Philip Zimbardo conducted what would become one of the most controversial and eye-opening behavioral studies of all time:
the Stanford Prison Experiment.
It showed how easily ordinary people could commit harmful acts when placed in positions of powerâhow quickly we adapt to the roles weâre given.
Zimbardoâs takeaway?
âThe line between good and evil is permeable, and almost anyone can be induced to cross it when pressured by situational forces.â
â Dr. Philip Zimbardo, The Lucifer Effect
That insight was sobering. But Zimbardo didnât stop there.
Years later, he chose to pivot.
Not away from darknessâbut through it⌠and toward the light.
Zimbardo founded the Heroic Imagination Project (HIP)âa nonprofit dedicated to teaching people how to resist destructive influence, develop moral courage, and practice everyday heroism.
His message became clear:
Heroism is not the domain of the extraordinary. It is teachable, trainableâand already inside us.
In his TED Talk, âThe Psychology of Evil,â Zimbardo explores how systems, environments, and culture can lead good people astray. But by flipping that same lens, he points out:
If ordinary people can be seduced into harm⌠then ordinary people can also be guided into heroism.
It all comes down to preparation.
To story.
To imagination.
Because when someone sees themselves as a potential hero, theyâre more likely to act courageously in real life.
This is where awe and fiction play a powerful role.
They create the emotional scripts that help someone imagine standing up, speaking out, or stepping inâbefore the moment of need arrives.
The Heroic Imagination Project doesnât ask people to become legends.
It asks them to rehearse their courage in advance.
To live with eyes open, hearts engaged, and the will to act when it matters most.
đ Want to go deeper?
Here are direct links to the source materials referenced in this section:
TED Talk â Philip Zimbardo: The Psychology of Evil
https://www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_the_psychology_of_evilHeroic Imagination Project â Official Website
https://www.heroicimagination.orgZimbardoâs Biography & Mission on TED
https://www.ted.com/speakers/philip_zimbardoWikipedia Overview of HIP (for general readers)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroic_Imagination_ProjectQuote Source â Goodreads: Philip Zimbardo on Evil & Choice
https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/124526.Philip_G_Zimbardo
đ Stories That Breathe Wonder into the Bones
Some moments in fiction donât just move you.
They mark you.
They sit in your chest like a candle lit years agoâstill flickering.
Still whispering something true.
I remember reading the scene in The Hobbit where Bilbo, small and shivering, chooses to spare Gollumâs life instead of killing him.
Tolkien didnât paint it as a triumphant moment. It was quiet.
But it was filled with something heavy and holy:
Mercy.
Compassion.
A choice that changed everything.
That was awe.
Not at dragons or treasureâbut at the power of a single, human decision to be better than expected.
These are the moments fiction gives us:
Encounters with wonder that alter the course of the storyâand the readerâs soul.
When Lucy steps through the wardrobe for the first time and feels the snow crunch under her boots.
When Ender realizes heâs destroyed an entire raceâand the weight of it turns him from soldier to seeker of redemption.
When Wilbur the pig sees the word âSOME PIGâ above his head and realizes he is loved.
When Harry stands between Voldemort and a friendâwithout a spell left in himâbut still chooses to stand.
These scenes arenât just good writing.
They are emotional blueprints.
They show us what courage looks like,
what sacrifice sounds like,
what wonder feels like when it matters most.
And thatâs why young readers need these momentsâdesperately.
Because the world is loud.
Itâs cynical.
Itâs fast and hard and filled with pressure to be clever, ironic, detached.
But awe⌠awe breaks through that.
It softens the shell.
It gives them space to feel again.
When a reader encounters wonder through a characterâs eyes, theyâre not just observingâtheyâre becoming.
Theyâre practicing:
Reverence
Empathy
Emotional risk
The courage to believe something might still be good
These are the seeds that grow into action later.
Because before a kid decides to do something braveâŚ
They have to see that bravery is possible.
Before they stand up to injustice,
before they forgive someone who hurt them,
before they choose compassion over crueltyâŚ
They need a story that shows them it can be done.
Fiction isnât just a mirror.
Itâs a map.
And the moments that breathe wonder into our bones?
Those are the landmarks we carry with us for life.
Not because the story was realâ
But because what it woke up inside us⌠was.
đ Stories Are Being Used to Grow Heroes
This isnât theory anymore.
This isnât abstract.
There are peopleâright nowâwho are using stories to build heroes.
To turn awe into action. Wonder into willpower.
And one of those people is Matt Langdon.
Matt worked closely with Dr. Philip Zimbardo and helped develop the Heroic Imagination Project into a global movement. But he didnât stop there.
He founded The Hero Construction Company and later, The Hero Round Tableâa global summit where educators, psychologists, scientists, artists, and everyday people come together to answer one question:
How do we raise more heroes?
And you know what they keep coming back to?
Story.
Not lectures.
Not punishments.
Not fear-based obedience.
But narrative.
Because narrative bypasses resistance.
It doesnât just teachâit transforms.
The best programs in the worldâlike HIP and The Hero Round Tableâuse stories to:
Build ethical frameworks in youth
Help them imagine moral courage before the moment of testing
Normalize heroic thinking as ordinary, accessible, and necessary
In Mattâs words:
âHeroism isnât something weâre born withâitâs something we rehearse.â
And whatâs one of the best rehearsal spaces?
Fiction.
đ Want to learn more?
Here are links to Matt Langdonâs work and initiatives:
Matt Langdon â Practice Makes Perfect .. Heroes
The Hero Round Table â Global Conference Site
The Hero Construction Company â How To Be A Hero
Heroic Imagination Project (HIP) â Where Matt helped build the foundation
https://www.heroicimagination.org/
If awe is the spark, stories are the torch.
And through people like Matt Langdon and Zimbardoâs legacy, those torches are being passedâinto classrooms, communities, and hearts around the world.
Because when a kid reads a story that makes them feel awe...
they just might become the kind of person who answers a call to act.
đ Final Thoughts â Awe Is an Invitation
Awe humbles us.
It reminds us that weâre not the center of the universeâ
that there are truths, beauties, and sorrows far bigger than we are.
But awe doesnât shrink us.
It awakens us.
It opens our eyes⌠and gives us new ones.
The kind that donât just see the world, but see what it could be.
The kind that donât just feel moved, but start moving.
Because the real gift of awe isnât a moment of wonder.
Itâs vision.
A new way of looking at strangers.
At pain.
At injustice.
At the small flickers of courage in the mirror.
Awe doesnât paralyze.
It calls.
It says:
âWhat you just felt? That sense that something matters more than you?
Thatâs the place your courage will rise from.â
And thatâs the invitation:
Not just to notice beautyâŚ
but to carry it.
Not just to admire the braveâŚ
but to train your own heart to follow.
Because the world doesnât need more admirers of goodness.
It needs more people who will answer awe with action.
â
Call to Action: Light the Spark That Lingers
⨠Share this with someone whose soul still pauses at sunsets.
Someone who cries at stories, or stares out the window because their mind is off building something beautiful.
They havenât outgrown wonderâtheyâre shaped by it.
đŹ Reflect with me:
When did awe first change your direction? Was it a story? A moment in nature? A person who made you believe more was possible?
What fiction first made you whisper, âI want to be like thatâ... and meant it?
How can we help the next generation not just feel aweâbut act from it?
đ Letâs raise a generation of readers whose wonder turns into courage.
Because awe is not an escapeâitâs the beginning of becoming.
You are MORE than you THINK you are.
â Jaime
NEXT TIME: The Stories We Tell Arenât Harmless. Sometimes, Theyâre Everything.
THANK YOU: For reading why I do what I do.
If youâve missed the series, here are the Why Fiction Matters links:
đĄ The Role of the Hero: Why Kids Need More Than Superpowers
đď¸ Why âEscapingâ Might Be the Most Honest Thing You Can Do
đ What If Wonder Is the Missing Ingredient in Every Great Story?
⨠The Stories We Tell Arenât Harmless. Sometimes, Theyâre Everything.
If your looking for wonder have you ever checked out Jeff Vandermeerâs Wonder book?