This year I decided I would “try something new” each and every week. Sometimes my new thing is a field trip I have planned, and I head off and experience a new place. This summer, I went to pick blueberries in Lexington, NC with my daughter for the first time. I had been to a pick your own strawberry farm before but had never picked blueberries. We enjoyed shopping in the farm store, meeting one of the owners, picking half a bucket full of blueberries, enjoying nature, and going out to lunch to a restaurant we had never visited before. Later that day, I made a cinnamon blueberry cake using a new recipe that came out really tasty. The blueberry farm was about an hours’ drive from Winston-Salem and we really enjoyed the trip from start to finish. I will definitely go blueberry picking again next year and discovered there are many pick your own blueberry farms in Winston-Salem. I plan to go a few times next summer and try out the local farms.
Some weeks I try a new exercise class. I tried a Pilates class one week and I tried Tai Chi class another week. I decided to continue weekly with Tai Chi and not to continue with Pilates at this time. Trying a new thing each week allows me to decide what I like and what I do not like. It helps me discover how I want to allocate my free time by doing the things I enjoy.
I have noticed that in COVID times a restriction took place for many people, myself included. I experienced a restriction on activities and social interactions which caused my life to contract which resulted in a deconditioning, physically and socially. My fear simmered and a filter developed on my decision-making process. Do I want to do this activity? I might get Covid. Many times, my answer was no. The fear of the risk of getting COVID was greater than my desire to complete that activity.
I made a conscious decision that I would try something new each week and expand my life and limit the contraction that was occurring. Sometimes my “new thing” is as simple as trying a new frozen item at Trader Joe’s or drinking a new seasonal coffee drink. That counts. I take all of the current CDC guided precautions to prevent COVID and face the fear and try new things.
A young woman I was talking to this about said, “Oh that is too scary.” But in actuality she was trying a lot of new things already. She probably was trying more than 1 new thing a week and didn’t even realize it. New college classes were starting up so that is 5 new classes in one week. She is new to Winston-Salem so I am sure she is trying new restaurants and going to new places. She is making new friends and had moved into a different dorm than last year. Her life was already in a state of expansion and growth so she didn’t need to make this a focus in her week.
If your life has shrunk a little or a lot and is feeling restricted you might be interested in giving this a try. Not only does trying new things create expansion, it also gives me something to look forward to. It gives me a feeling of control to consciously plan to try new things. A quote from Dr. Jean Kilpatrick that I find empowering is “Happiness is created not waited for.” She talks about creating happiness for ourselves, which is what I am doing. I choose to try activities that I think I would enjoy. It is okay if I don’t enjoy the new thing every single time, that is not the point. Expect that you won’t have a perfect experience every time. My less than perfect experiences include the time I tried wet composting, cooking yucca fries, or when I hurt my knee trying rock wall climbing which I wrote about if are interested in hearing that story. https://www.wavesoflove.net/post/are-you-as-afraid-of-heights-as-i-am
The process of discovery leads to personal growth and builds your courage. It will strengthen your emotional resiliency to walk into the unknown when life brings you unexpected or unwanted changes. Life is uncertain and when change or new things come around the bend that we did not expect it helps that we have practiced this process. It also helps you create and design a life you enjoy living and increase your moments of happiness. This is how memories are made and how traditions are started.
I encourage you to break out of your ruts and give something new a try. For my next field trip, my sister and I am going to the annual Apple Festival at the Historic Bethabara Park for the first time. I’d love to hear about your experiences trying new things. #createyourlife, #couragebuilding, #discoveryourpassions, #trynewthings
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