Hello, my name is Mason Stevens and I am originally from Oakdale, CA, but that does not explain who I am or where I am from. As a military kid who moved nearly every two years of my entire life, concluding with three different high schools in three different states, you could say that I was raised maybe a little different than normal. Because I was always exposed to new challenges and places, I look forward to change and working on things I am bad at instead of shying away from it. I am an advocate for learning and to never stop trying new things. 

After I completed my Bachelors at Webster University, I had the opportunity to continue learning abroad in Thailand and the Netherlands, while pursuing my Masters in Management and Leadership. 

Two of the biggest accomplishments in my life are my 24th birthday challenge and moving to Bangkok alone. For my 24th birthday I made a challenge for myself to run 1 mile every hour on the hour for 24 hours, with an extra 2.2 so I finished a marathon within the day. This was to push myself through a state of deprivation and pure struggle so that once I finished I could look back and see that if i could go through that, I could go through anything. 

Now my second one is a bit more personal. I know that we have all known someone that get just a little too mad and see nothing but red when their passions blind them. I am happy to say that this used to be me, but isn’t me anymore. There were times I would get upset and not know why, feeling like a soda can that someone shook up ready to pop. However, I knew this was something I struggled with and desired to improve it. 

When I moved to Bangkok, I wanted to learn more about Buddhism and meditation. I knew that if I immersed myself in the culture of enlightenment, I would learn so much, and boy I did! Through my experience and religious meditation practice, I learned how to control my mind, my heart, and believe in my spirit. I am by no means enlightened, but it has helped me a lot, and I continue to learn daily.