Motivational Minute
April 24, 2000
Hello Friends!
Here is a message of POWER and PASSION to get your week started with
ENTHUSIASM!
Please feel free to share it with your friends and associates.
GOALS...
We are all trying for something - striving to improve ourselves in some way. Whether in our jobs or our personal lives, we are looking to be someone or something. Sometimes we think we are on our way when...BAM! Something occurs that stops us in our tracks. Too often we simply stop right there. We knew what we wanted, and we didn't get it. So why move on?
"There may be a seven-foot wall in front of you. If you don't have a horse, that's a hard thing to jump. But, if you don't have a horse, what's stopping you from getting a ladder?" A man who knows more about overcoming misfortunes than most people on the planet spoke these words. This same man knows a thing or two about changing paths in life and adapting to circumstances out of his control.
Ronan Tynan is a remarkable Irish tenor. He has a gift - a talent - for singing in a beautiful, rich voice. He appears to audiences in sold-out auditoriums, standing tall on stage while delivering beautiful, perfect tones. But he didn't start out that way. Ronan went through years of tragedy and adversity before he reached this point.
Born with malformed legs, Ronan had difficulty walking as a child. Despite this, he learned to play sports wearing leg supports. He later attempted horseback riding, and eventually succeeded in becoming an amateur jockey. His legs were still weak, though, and he developed scoliosis. He took a massive fall from a horse at one point, breaking his jaw severely - but, despite all of this continued to ride, compete and win.
In 1980, Ronan's life took a massive turn. While riding a motorcycle, he was hit by a car. Doctors decided to amputate both legs below the knees. Ronan's path changed. He decided to make his way through academics. Applying to the National College for Physical Education, he was the first disabled student on the campus. Yet he managed to follow not only the academic challenges, but also the physical ones. He learned to run and play soccer using prosthetic limbs. He competed in international disabled tournaments, winning 18 gold medals and setting 14 world records for disabled athletes.
After school, Ronan made a few more decisions about his life goals. He had thought about going to medical school, and about singing - something he loved to do that he considered developing further. He chose medical school.
In his later years at med-school, he began to study singing, taking instruction from a well-known singer. He competed in - and won - singing competitions. After graduating, he entered a televised competition, which was seen by several doctors at the hospital in which he interned. The doctors were so impressed they took up a collection to help pay his way through the Royal Conservatory of Music. His path had veered yet again.
In 1997, disaster struck once again. After several competitions, including a terrific win at the International Singing Festival held in France in 1996, Ronan suddenly lost his voice. Doctors diagnosed a blockage caused by the surgery to repair his jaw after the riding accident years before. The problem was repaired, but he didn't know if his singing voice would return. So he returned to medicine, opening a practice in his hometown - yet another twist in Ronan's path.
In 1998, his father passed away, and Ronan stood to sing at the graveside. His recovery was not yet finished, but he sang in a perfect, true voice. Ronan pursued his singing career once again, recording CD's and appearing live all over the world.
WOW! This man's obstacles kind of take your breath away. Yet Ronan Tynan could not be held back from life. He set goal after goal, and did his best, despite seemingly never-ending set-backs and life changes. Each time adversity struck, he changed directions, steered around, or simply used a "ladder."
In the words of the late President Abraham Lincoln, "Whatever you are, be a good one." Whatever path you take, or wherever those unpredictable twists and turns take you, do your best. Accept that change is inevitable, even with the best plans. Its okay to take a break, but don't stop the momentum entirely. Adjust, breathe, reset your sights, and keep moving forward!
Have a passion filled week!
LAUGH-A-DAY
Some not so deep thoughts to make you smile:
Can you be a closet claustrophobic?
Is it possible to be totally partial?
If a mime swears, do you wash his hands with soap?
Why do they report power outages on TV?
When you open a bag of cotton balls, is the top one meant to be thrown away?
QUOTE-OF-THE-DAY
"Never despair, but if you do, WORK ON IN DESPAIR."
Edmund Burke
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