take a chance

A couple years ago I met a couple of brothers (early 20's) who had so many adventures to tell. They had met so many interesting people and had done so many crazy things in their life.  As I sat and listened to them tell stories, I was getting kind of bummed out. Here they were in their early 20's with a bunch of adventures already in their lives. Here I was, a 30+ year old housewife (not that there is a single thing wrong with that - I love my job of housewife) and a mother of two. I was somewhat quiet/shy and hadn't done a whole lot of exciting things. What adventures could I possibly have in my life?!

As I got to talking with the brothers, I asked how they had managed to do so many neat things in their life. Turns out that these boys rarely said "no" when an adventure came knocking on their door. How many things had I said "no" to because I was unsure or insecure?  When your life has been plagued by anxiety (see this blog)  you say "no" to, well, almost everything.

When I got home, my mindset has changed.  I was ready for adventures! Granted, I could not take a spontaneous road trip across the country. I had a family depending on me.  But I didn't find that dependence  limiting. I just decided to go with the life I had and make it more exciting (to me, anyway!)

I started out with a "40 before 40" list. It's a list of all the things I'd like to do before I turn 40.  I've got some major goals on that list! But some little ones too: shoot a gun for the first time, run a 5k (done plus some!), learn to skateboard, eat Thai food. Those kinds of things. Things that just make life more interesting!

My perspective on many things have changed. I like meeting new people. Everyone's got a story to tell. Everyone is interesting for some reason or another. When people ask me to try something new, I'm not scared (unless it has to do with very high places or small enclosed spaces because, shucks, those things are just plain frightening and anxiety-inducing!)

These days I take more chances, I take more risks. (For Pete's sake: I've started a blog with many of my innermost thoughts and let all my friends on facebook know about it: risky!) I've learned a lot from other people.  I have stuff to talk about in conversations.  I've made some neat memories.  And you know what? I'm starting to think that maybe I'm an interesting person, too! 

One of the neatest outcomes of all this is I don't shy away from my faith as much as I use to. It's a huge part of my life (actually, my life is run by my faith so I guess it is my life).  (Not to say that my faith is always evident, but I'm trying). (Should I put something else in parenthesis since I've already overused them in this paragraph?) (Nah).

Getting back to my point: it's now easier to talk about God. He's asked us to trust Him, talk about Him (plant the seed) and He'll do the rest!  I know I've got a long way to go before I'll be witnessing like He wants me to, but I've decided not to be afraid but to be more bold

What about you? What risks are you going to take this week? Have you made your 40 before 40 list?  Who have you been afraid to talk to?

KC

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