Merriam Webster's online dictionary defines passion as and intense driving, overmastering feeling or conviction.

Do you have a passion? Is there a cause, a person or an idea for which you have an intense, driving overmastering feeling or conviction?

In today's society, many of us try to curtail our passions because we are afraid of being branded as crazy, or out of control. Yet the men and women who have stood up and change lives, at home and world wide, were people who were passionate about their beliefs.

People who are sometimes referred to as gifted are really people who are willing to pursue their thoughts and harness their mental power so it can work for them instead of against them.

When I was growing up I remember having a strong desire to travel to other countries so I could experience life in other parts of the world. I also believed that I could make a difference in the world if I could educate and enlighten myself about other cultures, and the history of different lands.

As the youngest child and the only girl in my family the odds were stacked against me leaving home at the age of seventeen to travel to a foreign country were there were no relatives or friends that my parents could rely on to protect me. Yet it was the intense drive that burned within me to pursue my desires that overrode the fear of leaving home. It was that overwhelming desire that prompted me to endure the fight that I knew would ensue when I announced to my mother that I would be leaving home to live in the United States of America.

The great writer Richard Brode wrote a book titled: The Virus of the Mind. He said a virus has three functions:

• To duplicate itself
• To infiltrate itself
• To spread

I believe that Richard Brode wanted all of us to know that we have the ability to control our minds and that anyone who sets their mind to accomplish something can achieve.

We can allow the duplication, the infiltration, and the spread of our mental powers to take us beyond the negative thoughts that could derail us from reaching our full potential.

Last week I had the great pleasure of attending a MemorialCare Health Systems Management Meeting where Captain J. Charlie Plumb, a former Navy Fighter Pilot-P.O.W., was one of the speakers. Captain Plumb spoke of his six years in captivity as a P.O.W., and drew a parallel between his POW experience and the challenges of every day life.

The statement that stayed in my mind was when he spoke about being upset when his airplane was shot down and he was captured and placed in a prison camp where he was beaten tortured and treated as less than a human being. Captain Plumb spoke of a term that was used in the prison camp” the prisoner mentality”. The prisoner mentality is a state where the mind gives in to the surrounding circumstances. In a prison environment this means reducing the person to self pity, anger and eventually a total loss of control over the mind or even death.

While in captivity, Captain Plumb quickly realized that he would have to change his thinking from victim to becoming a victor.

Captain Plumb, along with all the other prisoners in that prison camp had to take control of their minds and use their creative abilities to project themselves out of the prison camps on a daily basis. Captain Charles Plumb did that for six years. Captain Plumb was able to harness is mind by using the power of mind control that all human beings possess. He had a passion. His passion was to live, to return to the United States of America to be with is wife who he loved with all his heart.

Captain J. Charlie Plumb received numerous military honors including two Purple Hearts, the Legion of Merit the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and the P.O.W. Medal.

Even as a young girl I realized that I could do anything that I put my mind and heart into. My passion was always to help people, from babies to the elderly. I was my home town beautician because I loved to make others look and feel good about themselves. My first job in the United States of America was a governess for a two month old baby. Today I am an advocate for the elderly and anyone who needs help caring for themselves.

My passion which started as a child has only grown stronger as I keep the awareness of the power of my mind in focus. We can keep our mind focus on our passion if we understand who we are, I see myself as an important part of nature to accomplish my goals and fulfill my passion.

I believe that I have the ability to control my mind and actions. I understand that my ego andawareness cannot co-exist together. In order to keep my mind in a creative state at all times I use my imagination. I see myself in the outcome of what I am trying to achieve, in my imaginary eyes I see the accomplishment of my dreams, and I celebrate within myself before the reality of my dreams are experienced by others.

My father told me I could be anything I wanted to be if I set my mind to it. He was right.

I have accomplished so many things that I wanted to accomplish, yet the power of my mind assures me that each new day brings an opportunity to create, renew, or change my world as I know it.

So let me ask you the questions I asked at the beginning of this article: do you have a passion? Are there recurring creative thoughts that keep coming into your mind? Do you feel a strong desire to create, change, or accomplish something that maybe no one has accomplished before?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you must now begin to control your mind, embracing the victor mentality and eliminating the victim thoughts and ideas. Focus on your creative thinking and set your imagination in motion as you mentally prepare yourself to see your thoughts materialize before your eyes. Success is always guaranteed when people focus on the betterment of mankind, and make contributions to the world they exist in.

REMEMBER: A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO WASTE