Mark Ristau's Blog - Posts Tagged "fear"
Christmas Story
The Christmas story is a story of birth—the birth of new ideas and new possibilities. It is a story of renewal, of the rebirth of the human spirit. It is a story of generosity and gratitude.
More than any year in recent memory, 2017 seems to support the notion of just how fragmented and disconnected we are from each other. But we're not. We're not defined by 2017. Nor are we defined by the past.
During this holiday season, we find ourselves on the threshold of a new year—yes, filled with uncertainty and fear, but also hope and faith, knowing that we can choose to let go of our fears and embrace the possibility of something new, something fresh, something extraordinary...
So let's take a moment to listen—to set aside reason and logic—and just listen...listen to the whisper of a snowflake, or the crash of a wave on a distant shore...for in that whisper or crash, we shall discover the wisdom that lies in our hearts...
Generosity. Generosity and gratitude.
Merry Christmas!
A Hero Dreams
More than any year in recent memory, 2017 seems to support the notion of just how fragmented and disconnected we are from each other. But we're not. We're not defined by 2017. Nor are we defined by the past.
During this holiday season, we find ourselves on the threshold of a new year—yes, filled with uncertainty and fear, but also hope and faith, knowing that we can choose to let go of our fears and embrace the possibility of something new, something fresh, something extraordinary...
So let's take a moment to listen—to set aside reason and logic—and just listen...listen to the whisper of a snowflake, or the crash of a wave on a distant shore...for in that whisper or crash, we shall discover the wisdom that lies in our hearts...
Generosity. Generosity and gratitude.
Merry Christmas!
A Hero Dreams
A New Dream
It's New Year's Eve. Outside my window, purple shadows are stretching across St. Paul's frozen landscape, and the sun is setting on 2017 for the very last time.
On this New Year's Eve, we find ourselves, like Ricky Williamson in my novel A Hero Dreams, standing on the edge of a threshold. When Ricky arrives at his threshold, he hesitates. On the other side lies the promise of a fresh start and a world of infinite possibility. Yet something holds him back. There's uncertainty, trepidation, fear. Of course he's come too far to reverse course, but like every person who walks the hero's journey, he must take a moment to gather his courage before entering the unknown—an unknown where new possibilities are waiting to be born...
So let's take a moment—and a deep breath—before entering 2018. Let's take an inventory of lessons learned and forgive ourselves for mistakes made. It doesn't matter how many times we've repeated our mistakes; the new year offers us an opportunity to follow a new path—the hero's path, for each of us is indeed a hero...
And let's gather our courage before taking that next step, for courage we will surely need if our intention is to create a new reality for ourselves, a new story, a new dream...
What's your dream for 2018? One based on past experiences and old mind patterns? Or one you choose freely with an open heart? We're all about to be handed a blank page. What do you intend to do with yours?
A Hero Dreams
Visit my Website
On this New Year's Eve, we find ourselves, like Ricky Williamson in my novel A Hero Dreams, standing on the edge of a threshold. When Ricky arrives at his threshold, he hesitates. On the other side lies the promise of a fresh start and a world of infinite possibility. Yet something holds him back. There's uncertainty, trepidation, fear. Of course he's come too far to reverse course, but like every person who walks the hero's journey, he must take a moment to gather his courage before entering the unknown—an unknown where new possibilities are waiting to be born...
So let's take a moment—and a deep breath—before entering 2018. Let's take an inventory of lessons learned and forgive ourselves for mistakes made. It doesn't matter how many times we've repeated our mistakes; the new year offers us an opportunity to follow a new path—the hero's path, for each of us is indeed a hero...
And let's gather our courage before taking that next step, for courage we will surely need if our intention is to create a new reality for ourselves, a new story, a new dream...
What's your dream for 2018? One based on past experiences and old mind patterns? Or one you choose freely with an open heart? We're all about to be handed a blank page. What do you intend to do with yours?
A Hero Dreams
Visit my Website
Origins
The origins for A Hero Dreams have been with me for almost as long as I can remember. One of my earliest memories is of nearly drowning in a swimming pool at the age of four. But somewhere along the way, I buried the memory. Then one day I remembered. I remembered the incident. And I remembered who I was—a storyteller. I had a story to tell...
While working as in-house counsel for a manufacturing company in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, I liberated myself each day at noon from the confines of my ten-by-ten office for a run. My hour-long reprieve would lead me along winding trails, past ponds and lakes, and through the natural wooded beauty surrounding our suburban corporate campus.
One summer afternoon, as the temperature soared past 100 degrees, I was sprinting past a small lake when my oxygen-deprived brain conjured up a ghostly image—the body of a small boy floating along the lake’s grassy shore. I stopped short. Magically, the scene came to life. Lost in reverie now, I found myself crouching in the grass and holding this phantom boy in my arms. I gazed into his face...
Thus, my protagonist was born—a young boy named Ricky who refuses to allow the circumstances of his life prevent him from pursuing his dreams. After losing his father, he embarks on a journey fraught with one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after another. Yet he continues on...
Ultimately, Ricky's story teaches us that we are not defined by the past, nor do our fears have control over us.
If a scared little boy can find the courage to leave the past behind and embrace the future with an open heart, so can we. It just requires a little faith...
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Visit my Website
While working as in-house counsel for a manufacturing company in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, I liberated myself each day at noon from the confines of my ten-by-ten office for a run. My hour-long reprieve would lead me along winding trails, past ponds and lakes, and through the natural wooded beauty surrounding our suburban corporate campus.
One summer afternoon, as the temperature soared past 100 degrees, I was sprinting past a small lake when my oxygen-deprived brain conjured up a ghostly image—the body of a small boy floating along the lake’s grassy shore. I stopped short. Magically, the scene came to life. Lost in reverie now, I found myself crouching in the grass and holding this phantom boy in my arms. I gazed into his face...
Thus, my protagonist was born—a young boy named Ricky who refuses to allow the circumstances of his life prevent him from pursuing his dreams. After losing his father, he embarks on a journey fraught with one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after another. Yet he continues on...
Ultimately, Ricky's story teaches us that we are not defined by the past, nor do our fears have control over us.
If a scared little boy can find the courage to leave the past behind and embrace the future with an open heart, so can we. It just requires a little faith...
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Visit my Website
Root Causes
In the aftermath of the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida, the issue of violence in our schools and communities has taken on a heightened sense of urgency. There has been much discussion around guns and legislation. What appears to be missing from the national discourse, however, is a conversation that examines the root causes of violence. Rather than pointing our fingers at the perpetrators and labeling them "mentally ill" or "monsters," we need to dive deeper...
We all have a deep-seeded, primal need to connect with others and feel that we belong. It's as vital a need as food and water. So what happens when a young person is deprived of this need? What happens when he or she is excluded from the group? Feelings of loneliness, isolation, and fear inevitably turn to anger—an anger that may fester for years before being expressed as rage.
So what's the answer? What can we do?
We might ask ourselves what role we're playing in perpetuating the problem of violence in our schools and communities. How do we treat the outsiders, the ones who are different, strange, weird, and possibly dangerous...the ones who sit alone in the far corner of the cafeteria? Would it be possible to reach out to them?
When we perceive each other as separate, when we exclude those who are different, who seem strange or weird, we plant the seeds of violence...
When we realize the truth of how deeply connected we are, reaching out to the excluded ones becomes as natural as breathing. The possibility of a new order of reality emerges—one in which the seeds of violence are transformed into seeds of peace...
My novel, A Hero Dreams, explores the problem of violence (and its causes) through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy named Ricky. It follows Ricky's journey to the edge of a threshold, where he will face the most important decision of his life—a decision we will all need to face sooner or later.
What kind of world do we want to live in?
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Learn More about A Hero Dreams
We all have a deep-seeded, primal need to connect with others and feel that we belong. It's as vital a need as food and water. So what happens when a young person is deprived of this need? What happens when he or she is excluded from the group? Feelings of loneliness, isolation, and fear inevitably turn to anger—an anger that may fester for years before being expressed as rage.
So what's the answer? What can we do?
We might ask ourselves what role we're playing in perpetuating the problem of violence in our schools and communities. How do we treat the outsiders, the ones who are different, strange, weird, and possibly dangerous...the ones who sit alone in the far corner of the cafeteria? Would it be possible to reach out to them?
When we perceive each other as separate, when we exclude those who are different, who seem strange or weird, we plant the seeds of violence...
When we realize the truth of how deeply connected we are, reaching out to the excluded ones becomes as natural as breathing. The possibility of a new order of reality emerges—one in which the seeds of violence are transformed into seeds of peace...
My novel, A Hero Dreams, explores the problem of violence (and its causes) through the eyes of a 10-year-old boy named Ricky. It follows Ricky's journey to the edge of a threshold, where he will face the most important decision of his life—a decision we will all need to face sooner or later.
What kind of world do we want to live in?
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Learn More about A Hero Dreams
Dark into Light
Human beings have been grappling with the problem of violence ever since the rise of the world's first civilizations some 5500 years ago. My novel, A Hero Dreams, explores this seemingly intransigent problem through the eyes of a child—a ten-year-old boy named Ricky. Early in the story, Ricky suffers multiple childhood traumas: a near-drowning at the age of four; the loss of his father when he's only eight. Later, he falls victim to a brutal assault at the hands of an older boy named Spencer Black.
The path that leads to the end of our suffering—and ultimately to inner peace—requires courage. This is not a time for squeamishness. We must embrace that which is most abhorrent to us and walk through the dark of night in order to witness the glorious dawn of a new day. This is why our journey is called the "Hero's Journey." It is a journey that lies well outside our comfort zone. It is a journey that will test our resolve. Along the way, we will be forced to face the very ugliest, the most vile aspects of human nature. This is unavoidable. We must face the dark if we wish to one day see the light...
We've learned that avoiding pain by burying unpleasant memories doesn't work. Our demons are clever. They have a way of resurfacing when we least expect it, often at the most inopportune moments.
Now here's the good news: Within each of us lies a hero—a hero of virtually unlimited resources. We have the tools and the power to choose to live our lives as men and women of courage. We are not defined by the past, nor do our fears have control over us.
In A Hero Dreams, Ricky's journey leads him through a metaphorical and literal "Tunnel of Doom," where all his demons are lying in wait. With each step, he must relive the terrors of his past—a necessary rite of exorcism. His only defense is to speak directly to the demons: "You're not real...None of this is real!" He's right. As we shall learn, the demons live—have always lived—inside his head and not in the material world.
As Ricky approaches the tunnel's end, he spies a speck of light that fills him with hope. When finally he emerges, his heart overflows with gratitude, and he lets loose with an exuberant yawp. But his journey is not yet over. There's a voice. A mysterious voice is enticing him to take one more step—a step that will transport him across a threshold and into another world...a world of infinite possibility...
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Visit my Website
The path that leads to the end of our suffering—and ultimately to inner peace—requires courage. This is not a time for squeamishness. We must embrace that which is most abhorrent to us and walk through the dark of night in order to witness the glorious dawn of a new day. This is why our journey is called the "Hero's Journey." It is a journey that lies well outside our comfort zone. It is a journey that will test our resolve. Along the way, we will be forced to face the very ugliest, the most vile aspects of human nature. This is unavoidable. We must face the dark if we wish to one day see the light...
We've learned that avoiding pain by burying unpleasant memories doesn't work. Our demons are clever. They have a way of resurfacing when we least expect it, often at the most inopportune moments.
Now here's the good news: Within each of us lies a hero—a hero of virtually unlimited resources. We have the tools and the power to choose to live our lives as men and women of courage. We are not defined by the past, nor do our fears have control over us.
In A Hero Dreams, Ricky's journey leads him through a metaphorical and literal "Tunnel of Doom," where all his demons are lying in wait. With each step, he must relive the terrors of his past—a necessary rite of exorcism. His only defense is to speak directly to the demons: "You're not real...None of this is real!" He's right. As we shall learn, the demons live—have always lived—inside his head and not in the material world.
As Ricky approaches the tunnel's end, he spies a speck of light that fills him with hope. When finally he emerges, his heart overflows with gratitude, and he lets loose with an exuberant yawp. But his journey is not yet over. There's a voice. A mysterious voice is enticing him to take one more step—a step that will transport him across a threshold and into another world...a world of infinite possibility...
A Hero Dreams
Mark Ristau
Visit my Website
Connection
Connection. It’s all about connection...
How connected—truly connected—do you feel in our fast-paced, results-driven, high technology, digital age? An old friend recently reminded me I’m not the only one who feels that tug in my heart, that longing for a deeper, more authentic connection with others...
A Hero Dreams follows a young boy’s search for connection in a deeply divided and all-too-often violent world...
At age 8, after the sudden death of his father, Ricky Williamson feels lost—hopelessly lost—and disconnected from everyone and everything. His world has become unrecognizable—a dark and hostile wasteland inhabited only by bittersweet memories and ghosts of the past. He wants to reach out to others—to his grieving, alcoholic mother, to his charismatic and athletically gifted brother Danny—but he doesn’t know how. Most of all, he wants to reach out to his beloved dad, but that's no longer possible...or is it?
Two years later, Ricky’s mother sends him to a New England summer camp where he learns the hard way that “honor” is the watchword and bullying is considered normal. After a traumatic incident at the pond, a mysterious voice assures him everything will be okay, but first he must take a leap of faith and cross a threshold into another world—a world where anything is possible...But can the voice be trusted?
What about you? Can you trust that voice...the one in your heart that longs for deeper, more authentic connections with others? Are you ready to take a leap of faith into another world?
A Hero Dreams
A Hero Dreams Website
How connected—truly connected—do you feel in our fast-paced, results-driven, high technology, digital age? An old friend recently reminded me I’m not the only one who feels that tug in my heart, that longing for a deeper, more authentic connection with others...
A Hero Dreams follows a young boy’s search for connection in a deeply divided and all-too-often violent world...
At age 8, after the sudden death of his father, Ricky Williamson feels lost—hopelessly lost—and disconnected from everyone and everything. His world has become unrecognizable—a dark and hostile wasteland inhabited only by bittersweet memories and ghosts of the past. He wants to reach out to others—to his grieving, alcoholic mother, to his charismatic and athletically gifted brother Danny—but he doesn’t know how. Most of all, he wants to reach out to his beloved dad, but that's no longer possible...or is it?
Two years later, Ricky’s mother sends him to a New England summer camp where he learns the hard way that “honor” is the watchword and bullying is considered normal. After a traumatic incident at the pond, a mysterious voice assures him everything will be okay, but first he must take a leap of faith and cross a threshold into another world—a world where anything is possible...But can the voice be trusted?
What about you? Can you trust that voice...the one in your heart that longs for deeper, more authentic connections with others? Are you ready to take a leap of faith into another world?
A Hero Dreams
A Hero Dreams Website
Mark Ristau's Blog
Reflecting on dreams, thresholds, and the possibility of what might lie beyond...
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