An episode of Diagnosis Murder gave me nightmares. I don't like meeting new people. I like eating the same things at the same restaurants. I value safety over excitement, order over chaos, and bulleted lists over just about everything.
I've been thinking a lot the past year about things I would do if I knew I could not fail. Then I've been trying to do some of them. They're not huge things, but they're huge to me.
Then I began thinking about what I would do if I weren't afraid. These tended to be smaller things than the "not fail" list, but they were still things that scared me.
One of the things I would do if I weren't afraid is to take a vegetarian cooking class. We all know that I struggle with cooking, with food, with weight, with blah blah blah. I became a vegetarian about eleven months ago, and since then I've become more and more interested in learning how to make healthy yumminess out of vegetables.
I don't have knife skills. I get flustered when there are too many things happening at the same time in the kitchen. I believe cutting squash should be on the list of World's Most Difficult Tasks, along with Achieving Peace in the Middle East, Going to Parties, and Not Getting Frustrated with Republicans.*
Despite all this, tonight I'm going to a vegetarian cooking class.
And I am afraid.
Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day that says, "I will try again tomorrow."
~ Mary Anne Radmacher
*Sorry, Republicans. Really, I am.
Good for you in tackling your fears and trying something new. My mother used to tell me I didn't like to step outside of my box as a child... not so much an issue for me now.
ReplyDeleteGood luck and I look forward to hearing what you learned to cook!
No need to apologize! I have the same problem, too--the getting "frustrated" part. (But maybe with a different camp, nuff said.) Having different opinions makes it all so much more entertaining! Can't wait to read about your class!
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited that you're doing something else that you're afraid of doing! That's the real definition of bravery.
ReplyDeleteBonnie, I have to declare that in the last five years you've been much braver than you give yourself credit for being!
Good luck tonight and thank you for inspiring me to acknowledge, confront and respond to my fears.
Be well.
Hope you surprised yourself and had a blast.
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