Taking What I Know

Lately, the Universe is trying to tell me to become a motivational speaker, or at least a motivator of learned experience, in some regard. I am trying to listen to this and figure out where to go next. With a class speech upcoming on Thursday, I have prepared a list of my own personal wisdoms to share in the same format in which this course was designed. So, I figure I will start by sharing them with my blog world:

LESSONS AND INSPIRATION by Ryan McLean

· You are responsible for creating your own reality. That includes both your prides and your limitations.

The way that you live your life is dependent upon how you see the world. After all, the world only exists for you through the way that you see, hear, taste, touch, and smell it. Your perspective is the key to finding true happiness within yourself and the world that you interact in. If you are unable to find happiness naturally, perhaps is just a case of altering the way that you perceive what is directly in front of you.

· Nobody knows how you’d react until it happens to you.

There is something to be said about experience. Without it, your reaction to situations would be far too raw and intolerable. You can never prepare yourself fully for any experience, and nor should you. The world opens up to each of us in various ways and there is no telling the way that it will be handled by each individual until sitting boldly in front of us. Trust in yourself to handle every situation with grace and truth.

· Joy and pain aren’t opposites; they are compliments.

For those who have experienced some of the lowest and darkest moments that they could imagine, have a special glimpse into a real sort of joy that couldn’t possibly be imagined any other way. It is only possible to recognize true happiness when both the face of fear and pain have been met, head-on. Take those instances of pain and use them as a stepping stone into something far more beautiful and permanent.

· The lessons you need most are all around you waiting for you to get the hint.

Those times in which you need guidance most is the time that you should sit back and listen to the wind, enjoy the way the trees dance, and wait for the universe to provide those things you have been seeking. Setting forth to find your own life’s lessons can be valuable and rewarding; however, many times it is far better to sit back, relax, and breathe into the day. Allowing yourself to be open to opportunities that may glance your way, is crucial when attempting to realize your true potential, because they may be otherwise missed if actively searching for something that may not be right.

· Force yourself to get to know you. An internal dialogue is absolutely normal and deserves to be listened to.

It goes far beyond talking to yourself. Your internal dialogue manages to keep you in check with the real you and can be far more valuable than one might think. This dialogue becomes more present when you unknowingly deviate from your true self. It is also a way for you to reflect upon the actions that you are currently making, paying close attention to the value that they have on your ultimate character.

· Challenging yourself is where you learn MOST about yourself.

Those times in which you feel most vulnerable and uncomfortable is where you can learn to let go of those things that you’ve placed for all to see and be the most true. When you set yourself up with a challenge, you are going forward towards a goal that you yourself has deemed difficult, yet rewarding. The process in which this challenge is made is what truly matters, along with the manner in which you poise yourself and react throughout its entirety. Life is one giant lesson in challenges and rising above your own self to be willing to dive into them.

· Believe in the present, accept the past, and hope for the future.

For all intents, the only thing that you have is right now. The past can only be remembered and the future one can only dream. What matters most is the moment of the present. Right now you are capable of rewarding adventures, mind-tingling thoughts, and the deepest perceptions of the surrounding world. Take it all in now; for it’s all you can be sure of.

Three Cups of Me

You know that question where you are supposed to decide on one person that you'd like meet, no matter the era or locale? Until just recently, I have never found a soul to completely fulfill that specified question.

After becoming mesmerized throughout the pages of "Three Cups of Tea," I discovered the work of Greg Mortenson and became enamored. He is a man who understands the value of education and the global impact that it can have when the specific efforts are applied. What's more, is that he took that understanding and created a tangible and proactive organization that has blossomed over the past decade or so.

So, not only did I come to find my answer to that question; but the reality of that scenario actually occurred before I really had a chance to imagine how it would even play out.

Yesterday I, with the persistence of my new, yet dear friend Christiane, found myself at an event where tea was the scaffolding for creating bonds and inspiring communities. Rubbing my eyes several times in disbelief, I sat among the graceful and the powerful and the charitable. Greg Mortenson flowed through the room, so light on his feet-- astonishing for someone of his grand stature. Not missing a smile, he moved around the room shaking hands and making acquaintances. As he neared my table, my heart began to shove the blood, rather forcefully, through my extremities and up to my head. It was trying so desperately to give me a better ability for intelligence.

Finally, he made it. A good friend of mine, Dave, sat next to me as my confidant for the day. He was the first approached by Mr. Mortenson. They shook and exchanged. It was now my turn...

"Hello," he said with giant hand outstretched.

"Hi, you already signed my book." Was the only thing that came out.

"Oh. And what is your name?"

"Ryan."

"Pleased to meet you, Ryan." And with apparently nothing more to say, made so by my indifferent-seeming answers, he left.

Seriously? Was that all I had to say? What about all of the questions that I have pondered for months on end about the inter-workings of his organization and the future of expansion into other territories and the concept of global education and all of the billions of other things that have kept me awake at night bouncing from synapse to synapse? What went wrong? Why couldn't I have come up with something, anything to say?

But that is when I realized, it wasn't to be that way. For that instant, he was sensationalized. He was a rockstar and I was a groupie. There was no room for a meeting of the minds in this concert hall. I was in no place to conjure up the greatest part of this man, and nor would I ever. And that is okay. I don't need to express to him neither love nor gratitude. I don't need to beg him questions.

What I need is to continue to learn and grow from those people around me, however close or far. I will take in little parts from each to create my own whole. I have no need to become someone that already exists, for that is far too overplayed. I will, though, take Greg Morteson's wisdoms and graces and courages and impulses to carry my own self to wherever it is that this soul might travel next.

It's Been 13 Years...

Since I was a kid.
Since my world seemed simple.
Since I jumped down stairs.
Since I believed that everything was only one way.
Since I used a kickboard.
Since things felt too hard to try.
Since I stubbed my toe.
Since I have been afraid of needles.
Since I could remain anonymous.
Since elevators weren't on my radar.
Since I wondered about my purpose.
Since life happened only on TV.
Since I was too young to understand.
Since history was something read, not created.
Since I questioned my character.
Since I did a cartwheel.
Since I lost in arm-wrestling.
Since the world revolved around me.
Since I needed others to make me feel good.
Since magic was only an illusion.
Since I saw obstacles as a bad thing.
Since I sat in darkness.
Since I found myself.

The World As I See It

You have senses for the sole purpose of giving your mind and spirit an awareness of everything else that surrounds it. Senses to taste, touch, hear, see, and smell anything to heighten the expression of the world. All of this I find fascinating.

Ever since my project ended, I have been left with two distinct imprints. The first is the outline of space in which I feel like I am actually missing out on those everyday experiences that I, sometimes, forced myself into. The other, a much more impressionable imprint--if you will-- being that of the lingering feeling of self-discovery.

I knew that going into this project that I was in need of finding my own deeper self. Someone that lurked behind the blue in my eyes. This person had yet to surface, although a part of me all along. Everyone has this self within them too. Its willingness to show itself, however, is quite different among you and me. My deeper self had been waiting for quite some time to appear and alter my consciousness for better or for worse forever.

This self has emerged right through the blue and into the world that exists only in senses. It is calling for me to experience the world in a new light. A light that sees much more than colors and creates far more than photosynthetic energy.

My self-awareness and global reflection is astonishing to me. I am far more capable than I have ever been. The clarity beyond the blue combined with the light that creates no shadows is here for all of us to experience-- to taste, to touch, to hear, to see, and to smell.

I urge you to go. Find your deeper self; the one that is patient to get out and show you true living from the inside out.