Transcript: Motivational Speech for My Runners
Greetings Parents and Cross Country & Track & Field Athletes- Graduates of 2016!
Before I begin, real quick...English teachers and individuals with an English background…assail your ears! Or better yet, raise your hands. Both of them. Now take your hands and muffle your ears…because I am about to butcher the English language. My runners are accustomed to my playful use of solecism (incorrect grammar). In practice, I would purposefully replace linking verbs such as “is” with “be” “are” or “am.” Such errors drove them absolutely bonkers!...to which I would respond, “Your English teachers would be proud.” Today, I shall continue my tradition. Is, be, are, and am be at my mercy.
As you have learned in your English and even Spanish classes, Is, being a linking verb refers to your state of being. Estar- state of being. What is “state” and what is “being”? Or a better question to ask is: What “state” is your “being”? Let’s first discuss state. State refers to environment. Your internal and external environments. What is happening to you internally (within yourself, meaning your mind, body, spirit) and how you perceive your external environment (outside of yourself) will affect the state or condition of your being. A reoccurring lesson you have learned on our team is mindfulness/wellness- physicality, mentality, spiritually. Yes, yes, you remember don’t you. When you sense your body be strong, when you be thinking straight, when you be feeling good, your outlook is positive and your state of being is in balance. When you sense your body be weak or tired, when you be confused or frustrated, or when you be feeling angry or sad, your outlook is negative. This negative outlook is indicative of the compromised state, the misalignment, the conditions your being is experiencing. We’ve all experienced the positives and negatives. Especially you teens and all your fluctuating hormones. One minute you be up, another you down. Then you be excited, and all of a sudden you frown. Why am I telling you this? You will experience these fluctuations in college and even the real world. Your external environment- friends, family, locale, customs, tastes- will constantly change, thus affecting the condition of your being. With this said, let’s now discuss being.
Who be you? My mom used to say, college is where young people venture to discover who they are. They’ll take psychology classes or philosophy. They’ll seek new social groups or try to break out of the box prescribed by their parent’s aka wilin' out. They’ll experiment with drugs, sex, alcohol, and other controversial acts misconstrued as symbols or milestones of adulthood. In essence, they actively or even passively do things to affect change on their state of being as a means to discover their inner being. What is being? Who be you? How do you determine who you be?
Many of you listening may say, I already know who I are! I know who I be. Why you asking? But dig this. You have spent your entire life living under the watchful eye of your parents, family, neighbors, friends, teachers, and administrators. Each of these factions have imposed rules, social constructs, or expectations onto you to protect you, govern you, guide you, and hopefully influence you in a positive way. College will be the first moment in your life where you will be separated from this bubble. You’ll be in the deep end of the pool with no lifeguard, complete solitude, alone…will you sink or swim? College is the time you will be alone with you, your being. In Spanish, this verb is ser- meaning simply to be. The unchanging entity within you. Be cognizant of the difference between the definitive being defining who you be versus the ever-changing state of being.
Who you be is who I am! Let’s go back to the beginning. Genesis! In Genesis, we are introduced to I AM. You all know who I AM is correct? When Moses spoke to voice emanating from the burning bush on Mt. Horeb, God replied, “I AM.” He didn’t define himself in terms of his state of being meaning, I am [Fill in the blank]. He simply said, “I AM.” What does this mean? What does this mean for you?
Perhaps Popeye can translate: I am what I am what I says that I am.
No? Maybe Elisa's guy Eminem can help us? "I am whatever I say I am!"
Close. Perhaps I can provide a better translation. I AM refers to being. If you are in line with the Word, I are and I AM are synonymous. When you find yourself lost, frustrated, deep in thought, go back to the beginning. What be you? I be I AM. What state of being (physical, mental, spiritual) is I AM in today at this moment? Frustration develops when what you sense (see, hear, touch, smell, taste) interferes with I AM. Listen up! I AM provides clarity. I AM provides strength. I AM provides vision. I AM is unchanged. Your being is unchanged. To change your outlook, to find your drive, to find direction, go back to the beginning, the Genesis of your life. Go back to I AM.
Take heed as you enter the ever-changing “Real World.” In the revolutionary words of John Meyer, “There’s no such thing as the Real World. It’s just a lie you’ve got to rise above.” And when you do rise, you will be aligned with your calling.
Women of Distinction, walk with awareness! Recognize who you are! Set your being in accordance with God’s Word for he is within you and therefore you are I AM. May this message be a blessing to you as you venture forth through college and life. I truly wish you all the best in your endeavors. And always remember, RUN FAST.
Congratulations and good luck to you all!
Thank you!
