Category Archives: Megan Sheahan

Jan 11 2012

Friendships

ImageToday I visited my oldest and dearest friend. We have literally been friends since we exited our mothers’ wombs. I realized that I have not appreciated her as much as she deserves to be appreciated. She has done so much for me- she has been loyal through all of my drama, all my emotions, all my craziness, all of my changing feelings and relationships. She’s never judged me, she’s never told m e to shut up, she’s never made me feel that I can’t tell her something. She’s always loved me and accepted me- and trust me, I can be pretty unlovable.

I realized today that she sets the standard for what a friend should be. Those with whom you surround yourself, I have learned, will make all the difference in your life. In high school, one of my teachers always said to keep friends on three levels: friends above you, friends equal to you, and friends below you.

 

The friends “above you” should be a select few who are more mature, probably but not necessarily older, and living their lives in a way which you admire and aspire to follow. They should be individuals who keep you accountable, advise you, and to whom you can confide. You should be able to trust they will give you sound advice, and help you to stay on the right path.

 

The friends “equal to you” are those at a similar maturity level and at similar places in their lives as you are. You relate to each other, encourage each other, and ultimately want to see each other succeed.

 

Finally, the friends “below you” are those who you influence, advise, and serve. They are those by whom you should not be influenced, but you should love, edify, and encourage. Inadvertently, they end up keep you accountable for your actions, because you learn to live by example.

 

They say, “you are who you hang around”, and that’s so true. I would like you encourage you to surround yourself with people who edify you, build you up spiritually and emotionally.

It’s obvious that you should not surround yourself with “friends” who bring you down, but it is also dangerous to be with people who keep you stagnant- who do not challenge you or help you to do better, to go further, to want more.

 

In the end, why waste your time if a friendship is not edifying or challenging you to grow and be a better person?  And if you are not the one benefitting, is the other person at least benefitting from you? 

Dec 4 2011

Talk to me.

Hey there! This is Meghan and I’m excited to be one of the new interns at Open Our Eyes! This is just something that I’ve been thinking about this week and it’s given me a lot of encouragement, so I thought I’d share it with you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR3rK0kZFkg

The link above is to a video entitled “Jessica’s Daily Affirmation”…and it has stolen a piece of my heart. I’ve lived for many years as my own biggest critic. I have constantly battled with myself, my mind being filled with ways I could have improved, areas of my life I am not meeting my own personal (and often unrealistic) standards, and talking myself out of going for certain opportunities or reaching out to certain people. But what if I let all the expectations go and simply was okay with me—however I appeared to be? What if I took the perspective of this little girl and noticed the positive things in my life? Maybe then I would realize that our thoughts are probably the most powerful things we can ever possess, and our most important conversations are often the ones that we have with ourselves.

Self-talk has a tremendous impact on our attitude and our behavior. Negative self-talk produces bad attitudes, poor efforts, giving up. Positive self-talk leads to good attitudes, motivation, and perseverance. Life is a process, but for me, I certainly grow at a more steady pace when I am affirmed for the positive strides I have made, rather than the steps I have left to take. I encourage you to focus on your value as a human being this week; that there ARE some positive things to affirm about who you are. Focus on the things you do well, the things that are “life-giving.” Write out some of these things and begin to intentionally meditate and think on them (Ex. I am a person of value. I have something to offer. I am able to receive encouragement and support from others. There are good things planned for me in the day ahead. I am a good person and I like myself. I have power to control my thoughts and attitudes today. etc).

If you are a person of the Christian faith, feel free to use Scripture to affirm your identity in Christ (Ex. I am fully forgiven and free from all shame and condemnation. (Romans 8:1-2; Ephesians 1:7-89; 1 John 1:9) I am fully resourced to do everything God has called me to do (Deuteronomy 8:18; Luke 6:38; Philippians 4:13) I have the wisdom of the Lord concerning every decision I make (2 Chronicles 1:7-12; Proverbs 2:6; Ecclesiastes 2:26; James 1:5) ) Do whatever works for you. I have a few of these “affirmation statements” written out on a notecard, and I read them outloud every day. I’ve heard that if you say something enough, you’ll come to believe in its’ truth. Let’s give it a try this week.

Be nice to yourself; YOU DESERVE IT! :) — Meghan

Dec 4 2011

Tears! Tears! Tears!

TEARS! tears! tears! In the night, in solitude, tears; On the white shore dripping, dripping, suck’d in by the sand; Tears—not a star shining—all dark and desolate; Moist tears from the eyes of a muffled head: —O who is that ghost?—that form in the dark, with tears? What shapeless lump is that, bent, crouch’d there on the sand? Streaming tears—sobbing tears—throes, choked with wild cries; O storm, embodied, rising, careering, with swift steps along the beach; O wild and dismal night storm, with wind! O belching and desperate! O shade, so sedate and decorous by day, with calm countenance and regulated pace; But away, at night, as you fly, none looking—O then the unloosen’d ocean, Of tears! tears! tears!

- Tears by Walt Whitman

My name is Megan. I often go by Megan-Thuy. One thing that you should know about me is that I am a literature geek. That’s actually something not many people know. Another thing not many people know, is that my favorite poet is Walt Whitman. Being the nerd that I am, I ordered the Complete Works of Walt Whitman when my parents offered my a reward for completing a daunting task. Last night, I was flipping through random pages, and came accross one of his poems, Tears.

That brings me to the third thing- no one knows about the nights I cry myself to sleep. In fact, I’m sure you can agree that many don’t know the nights you cry yourself to sleep. If you’re anything like me, you’ve cried oceans of tears one night, and the next day, went to school, or to work, or to anywhere else with a smile, and without a single sign of the pain inside of you. With that, perhaps you felt alone.

One thing that we all have in common is that we FEEL. Yes, we all react differently to situations, and can never completely understand someone else’s life and how they feel pain or deal with pain, but we can all relate in that we do feel pain. Maybe now you feel alone. Maybe you feel afraid. Remember, you’re NOT alone. Even if no one else knows what you’re going through, someone out there feels your pain. I’ve learned that the best way to rid myself of pain is to reach out to others. I encourage you to try to use any pain you’ve felt, or even still now, to relate to someone else. By doing so, you’re giving yourself purpose. You don’t even need to share your deepest darkest secrets, but if you just someone you’ve been there and find common grounds, and make an effort to cause someone to smile, or make someone feel a little less lonely, at least once a week- or if you’re an over achiever, every day- things may begin to seem brighter.

Even when we all feel alone- we’re together in that too.

Make someone smile today, even if it seems impossible to smile yourself.