New beginnings...

Hello to all who have come to this blog upon this great moment,

Thank you for visiting me and my thoughts. I only hope I can communicate all the abstract crazy thoughts that go through my head moment by moment, giving you a bit of a glimpse into the current whereabouts of this stage of my life.
I'll be honest with you, this will not be filled with a ton of concrete situational endeavors, save that I find myself in situations that cannot pass without being noted. I will, however, assure you that my always changing consciousness will be honest with you as I progress.
So let me tell you. I arrived at Rockhurst High School in Kansas City MO on Saturday, August 7th. It is now 5 days after that. And I must say, it has been some of the craziest 5 days of my life. Non stop action. I begin teaching tomorrow, Friday the 13th (wow I just realized that... aawesome), and I have a few ideas of what I will do to the students on this first day. I will be sure to let you know what I do when I do it, but for now, I will leave you with the idea that I will add mercilessly to their Freshman fear and uncertainty, for as one of my Spanish teaching colleagues has informed me, Freshman are not at a level in which they  know the difference between fear and respect.
Ya, I've had non stop meetings for 4 days, but that's the boring stuff. The cool stuff is what you want to hear. So check this out- I am officially "Coach Lawlor" for the Cross Country team. I started coaching on Monday evening, and I have been at all practices since. We're running 2 a days, at 6am and 7pm (because of the intense heat/humidity), and on Tuesday, I did both runs with the kids to come down to their level and connect more to the terrible and incredible pain of cross country practices that I remember briefly from so long ago. Long story short, I ran over 10 and a half miles with them that day, did an hour of lunges, pushups, abs, and other calisthenics, and reached a point of exhaustion I hadn't in quite some time. But it was fantastic. I ran 7 miles in the morning and felt like a million bucks. Getting back in shape is feeling beautiful and coming at a great time as I enter into this new experience of the unknown.
Time for a little philosophical reflection on running. Running is the perfect metaphor, because it is one of the only activities that is perfectly intertwined with the metaphor it represents. Let me explain. In times of trouble, we are often encouraged by others to "run through the pain" or "run through the walls," or even "run through these streets," a direct line from the song Half Light I on Arcade Fire's new album The Suburbs (which I am listening to now interestingly enough, and which you should get ASAP if you prize spirituality and life in general.) The metaphor can be found in much poetry. Well, when one physically runs as a cross country runner does, one is truly and physically running through true and physical pain. Yet along with that physical pain is the mental anguish that ensues when one becomes aware of the pain. So while we runners are running through the physical pain, we are simultaneously running through the abstract pain we inflict upon ourselves in our minds. We run against ourselves, and as we run, we become stronger, for we continuously push ourselves through the walls that lay all around us at all times. Getting up and chugging a coffee for that boost is not the greatest method, for it is a temporary fix- the walls around invade soon after the buzz wears off. But running can become a lifestyle, a lifestyle in which one is constantly charging through all obstacles he or she is faced with and become a stronger and better person each time.
Pardon that long unanticipated and rambling reflection. Thank you for still reading if you are still here. I will not keep you longer for now. I will only tell you that I forsee a fantastic year of growth in spirituality, strength, and character, and I am excited for all the amazing opportunities arising in all directions. I hope that all of you are great, and I assure you I have not and will NEVER forget all you have given me in this crazy journey of my life. I love you all so much, and I realize I am nothing without all you have so graciously and humbly offered me throughout my time on earth with you. I cannot wait until our next meeting, until our paths cross in the crazy intertwined spider web of concurrent existence, and I promise to update you as often as possible with the current whereabouts of my traveling perspective.
With love and peace from KC,
Sean

The river of eternity moves forward into the endless distance... ride its mysterious stream, and become one with its everlasting source...