This summer, our nine-year-old and six-year-old tried something new…they joined swim team! As I fumbled through ordering swim team suits, finding goggles that wouldn’t leak, and trying to figure out what the difference between 25s, 50s, IMs, and relays were, they flourished. They have been swimming since they were infants, but not with stroke expectations and not against anyone else. I stood in awe as their dove off blocks, swam IMs, and made new friends.
For me, it takes some convincing and an awful lot of arm twisting to try new things. I have a pretty good idea at what I am good at and I don’t really need to spend time and energy on the things I am not so good at…or do I? Maybe we don’t try new things as adults because we develop patterns that help us predict what’s up ahead. Maybe we try to create certainty in an uncertain world because it makes us believe that we have some kind of control over how life works out. Maybe we are just scared.
Whatever the reason, I wonder what it would be like if I dove first into something new like our kids did. What would it be like to walk into a new activity and a new community with such confidence and excitement. I would look like showing up as our full selves ready to learn and ready to change.
As they showed me the ribbons they had won this season, I couldn’t help but smile and say, “You did it!” They may have thought I was talking about winning a heat or getting third place, but what I was really saying was, “You showed up and tried something new. I’m so proud of you!”