THINKING OUT LOUD WITH ALINA MCLEOD, MY NEW CANADIAN FRIEND
I would like to start my post-article by referring to the words of Savi Sharma, an Indian novelist, “ Everyone has a story. It could be a story of dreams, friendship, or hope. Every story is worth telling.”
So, today I am going to tell you about my new friend Alina McLeod who is a Canadian actress, a fashion model and one of the most popular Youtube bloggers. I have decided to interview her for my blog.
In the photo: Alina McLeod
Alina started modeling when she was 14 years old. In Toronto, she started building her acting career and working on her YouTube channel. She does a lot of different things. Usually, it is something creative.
Also, it is known that she is fond of travelling and has already been to Australia, Switzerland, Japan, and many other countries. A few weeks ago it was very nice to meet her in my home country (Kazakhstan). Kazakhstan was on her must - visit list.
My Canadian friend finds the Kazakh culture unique and thinks that such Kazakhstani cities as Almaty and Nur-Sultan (ex Astana) are amazing and beautiful. I am proud of it, love hearing such warm words about my country from foreigners. She said, “I’ve had the most spectacular day exploring Nur - Sultan and I am so impressed by this city! It has taken me completely off guard compared to everything else I’ve seen in Kazakhstan. It feels like a world all in its own, a true mix of Europe meets Asia”
Concerning Kazakhstani people, Alina states that the locals are hospitable and kind. I am pleased to hear that.
When I had met Alina in Kazakhstan, she made a good impression on me as a very versatile and warm-hearted person. However, the most valuable thing that inspires me is her positive and open-minded attitude to life. She is always grateful for this current moment of life realizing deeply that the present moment is the only thing that truly matters. Everything else is trivial.
And I totally agree with her. We all live in the hectic and fast-paced world by scheduling our job, our evenings out and so on. The majority of people always work for a better tomorrow. That’s very important and necessary, but the beauty of the present moment will be spoiled by fears and concerns about the future. Individuals, who look only to tomorrow, are certain to miss the present. If we would like to pursue an abundant and happy life, we should live in the here and now.
The second thing that is worthy of respect is her optimistic mindset in life in order to find inner peace. She said, “To find that inner peace I usually find reconnecting to that inner knowingness is key. For me, it’s important to isolate myself for a bit until I get my energy back and my head clearer before I go deal with a problem of a difficult person. I always try and remember that it’s our PERCEPTION of the world that mainly shapes how we experience it, so if I realize I’m constantly telling negative stories about something, I’m responsible to change that."
I think that sometimes when we deal with some negative moments in our life, instead of seeking a solution to the problem it would be more reasonable to change our attitude to it and accept what we have now and let it go. This is life and things happen. If we react positively to negative situations, we will live in harmony with the world around us. With this in mind, I would say that Alina is, to some extent, a philosopher. It is rarely seen nowadays.
She said,
“The more I travel I do begin to see how we are all truly connected and that we shouldn’t be so afraid of each other’s differences. Just because someone doesn’t have the same faith as you, doesn’t live like you do, doesn’t look like you, doesn’t mean you don’t have the most important thing in common; humanity. We are all here for our own destinies and should be allowed to prosper as we wish”
During my interview, I was also curious to know what Alina thinks about the purpose of life and what 3 traits she values most in people.
She believes that “ our main purpose is to regain consciousness with our source of being. Whether you consider that to be God or a Universal sort of energy is your choice, but I think there is more to what we perceive as ‘life’ than just our physical reality. From there we can begin to experience that physical reality in a completely new and fulfilling way. We then feel a connection between us and all beings on this planet.”
“The 3 qualities I really value in someone is awareness, a sense of adventure and honesty. Awareness probably first and foremost because we can’t change anything in our life unless we see ourselves and others in different lights and also have compassion. Sense of adventure because I think our world is so amazing that it’s crazy to just do the same things over and over. And honesty not only with others, but with yourself as well.”
As you can see her ideas are thought-provoking. After talking to my Canadian friend, there were several conclusions that came to my mind: 1) Do what you enjoy and live more in the present moment 2) Always be optimistic and always pay attention to your perception of life 3) Challenge yourself and Have fun.
That’s very interesting, eh? We always learn something new from everyone we meet. I think that we don’t meet people by accident.
We live only once and we should surround ourselves with interesting and good people. We should try to be friends with those who love life and believe that something good is always coming around the corner. Yes, “we live only once, but if we do it right is more than enough” ©
I am very grateful to Alina Mcleod for such a fascinating interview for my blog. I wish her wherever she goes always to meet nice people! Wish you a life filled with happiness and joy, my friend!
In the photos: Alina McLeod and Jandos Salpynov