Prison courses are awesome. There appears to be an unlimited upside and very little downside to teaching prisoners how to meditate. Our prisons are incredibly overpopulated and the "lock them up as punishment so they change" model isn't working. In 2002 the first 10 day course was held at Donaldson Correctional Facility, a high security …
Author: Ryan Shelton
While my job description is to lead the science department and teach physics at Padua Academy in Wilmington, DE, my calling is to prepare teenagers to lead their communities towards a vibrant and healthy future. This purpose has lead to the creation of Loving Lives Delaware.
Before becoming a teacher, I explored many careers and had many adventures in search of the best way to make a difference in the world. I hiked over 1700 miles, traveled to 5 continents, managed a bakery, started a meditation center, counseled troubled teens, attended Duke, UNC, and Harvard, protected forests as a wildland firefighter, volunteered thousands of hours with Americorps, rafted the Grand Canyon, and SCUBA dived on the Great Barrier Reef.
My next adventure is starting a family with my beautiful wife in our Wilmington home. I'm sure there will be many mistakes along the way, but I hope we're able to create a loving household that's a beacon of support and clarity for others in our community. Thank you for all of your support throughout our journey.
Tell Me About Yourself…
First impressions our important. They can be the difference between making a new best friend and looking like a weirdo so when someone says to me, "Tell me about yourself," I want to have a good answer. I want to be open, honest, and interesting without appearing too strange, different, or disconnected. Being too equanimous can …
Controlling The Adrenaline
10 days ago when I hosted my first group meditation I noticed that some new distractions entered my mind. Instead of concentrating on my own practice I started worrying about whether I was being a good host. I wondered if it was too hot for people. I was concerned that the Goenka recording might malfunction. …
No Gurus Allowed
One of many unique aspects of this tradition is that there is no guru to tell you how to live your life. If you've never taken a 10 day course it may appear that Goenka is the guru. He might even come across as a controlling guru because he doesn't even trust his assistant teachers …
Now On Facebook
I've created a facebook page to connect to this blog called: http://www.facebook.com/ContinuingVipassanaPractice If you want blog posts to come across your facebook feed just go to this site and "like" it. I want to share my motivation for doing this. 1) I wanted to publish this blog in a place that people could easily find …
Vibrations
This post is going to struggle to have a linear path because I don't really understand vibrations as a whole. Instead I've experienced little bits of the reality of vibrations that I'm going to attempt to piece together here. Everyone knows what emotions are and everyone knows that emotions can be contagious. When one person starts …
The Seed Of Truth That I Can’t Escape
Vipassana meditation reminds me of the movie The Matrix. Morpheus explains to Neo, "This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay …
Sex, Drugs, And Alcohol
I'm about to open up a can of worms. This is a loaded subject that can be controversial and is often avoided but sex, drugs and alcohol are such huge parts of our society that I want to give my two cents. I want to emphasize that the following thoughts are mine alone and not …
Vipassana Helps Me Fend Off Depression
When my Dad was diagnosed with brain cancer I quit my job to help support him and my family. He died 7 months later. For the 6 months after that I helped my I helped my Mom stabilize and get back on her feet. It's an understatement to say this process took a lot out of …
Meeting New People
I've always loved the adventure of meeting new people. I would seek out individuals from different backgrounds, cultures, ages, and personalities. I've found that connecting with strangers is the best way to learn something new, gain a new perspective, or to make a dull situation exciting. I also enjoyed the adventure of making the proper …
Living Vipassana 