My Year of Yes

I am not sure how this started...my "year of yes." I think it was around my birthday and I was with my friend, Karin, celebrating. She made last year her year of yes - which included a trip to Australia and a walking tour of the Bay of Fires in Tasmania. I am not sure my year will be quite so grand. But, I like the concept. She tried to spend the year embracing and being open to things she might not usually say yes to. We talked about it near my birthday and I decided why not? I feel like I am in a bit of a rut so maybe if I said yes to different opportunities I will be pleasantly surprised.

The idea has taken some time to wade through. I called Karin panicked a few weeks after my birthday and asked her to clarify what this all meant when I had turned down an offer and Michael questioned my ability to embrace my year. A definite introvert by nature, does this mean I should say yes to every social event that comes my way? I much prefer hanging out with a few people than a crowd. She assured me that being open to opportunities didn't mean that I had to change my core. I don't need to agree to every thing that comes my way - that sounds exhausting just thinking about it. See....an introvert. But, I need to spend more time considering opportunities that my gut reaction is to decline.

What has this looked like so far? An art class, signing up for another round of the Epic Relay this summer (my body already hurts thinking about it), changing my workout to do something besides running, picking up a book about introverts that I had stopped because sometimes introspection is hard, an overnight trip to the beach with my kids in December that included waving jumping in rain boots and joining a women's bible study from church (my kind of women - they meet at Starbucks and don't mind that I can only come half the time). All of these have been really great experiences. 

You may look at my list and think all of them sound fun and like not much of a stretch, but for me, they are - some more than others. In the book Quiet by Susan Cain, I found a description of introverts that I feel is pretty accurate for me. "They prefer to devote their social energies to close friends, colleagues, and family. They listen more than they talk, think before they speak, and often feel as if they express themselves better in writing than in conversation. They tend to dislike conflict. Many have a horror of small talk, but enjoy deep discussion " (p. 11). My mom's a former English teacher so I have to cite my source. 

So, the trick becomes merging my introverted tendencies with my desire for new opportunities. So far, it's been fun. I have enjoyed everything I said yes to more than I expected. I am not sure what the next several months will look like but I have a few ideas. I just got an email from Medical Teams International suggesting I finish the application I started to volunteer on an international team. Um.....okay? Mason thinks my year of yes should include some golf lessons. I think it will include more writing. I'm not sure but I am going to try to stay open ...and say yes.