Don't Get Too Comfortable....

At church this past Sunday, Fr. Bob spoke about stepping outside your comfort zone. I felt as if he was talking to me specifically. You see, I spent three days last week outside of my comfort zone. I put myself there. I wanted to be there. I was part of a small group that trained to facilitators on the new High Ropes course at camp. I was excited and nervous at the same time, having no clue what to expect. Unlike the other participants, I had never been on or even looked at a high ropes course and was feeling a little overwhelmed at the beginning. I can’t say it was completely the heights, but frankly, 20 or 40 feet in the air, standing on a wire or a teeny tiny platform, scary. The course was mentally challenging, even more so than physically. I made the choice to take that training and wanted to squeeze every drop of experience out of it that I could.



There were people in the group I knew, people I didn’t, people I felt super comfortable with and trusted, and others I wasn’t so sure about. Trust is not something I can give on a whim. I don’t want to be preachy and say that you have to earn my trust, yadda yadda, but honestly, I had a hard time just putting my life in someone’s hands right away. Saying to someone, “Yes, go ahead, clip me into these cables and I’ll just trust you” or “Sure, I’ll stand on this platform with you and trust you to send me down the zip line” or “Uh, okay, I’ll climb this wall and let you control the ropes that keep me from plummeting to the ground,” not so easy. It was a completely different world up there, at least the view I had. It was new, it was scary, it was challenging to the body. I had muscles that hurt that I didn’t know I had, I had scrapes and bruises, I had a thumb that was still healing that got pushed to it’s limits and perhaps beyond.


Going beyond what we perceive to be our limits is not easy at all. As humans we like to comfortable, we find our circle, our niche, the places and people we feel at ease with, and we tend to stick with that. Some people are brave souls, living life outside that circle, or perhaps with no circle at all. It is a challenge and a choice to step outside that comfort zone, to take a leap of faith (though often not so literal of a leap), and try something new. Climbing the wall, riding the zip line, traversing elements suspended in the air, none of these things fall within my comfort zone. I stepped outside, took some deep breaths, and went for it, did the best I could, and told myself that trying something new, taking the challenge, already means I succeeded. I may not have been the best at doing the tasks, but I did the best I could.


It was odd to sit in church, where, to be completely honest, I am not always listening, and feel like someone was talking to me. I know Fr. Bob wasn’t, but relating what he was saying to what I had experienced for three days, was interesting. I can’t say the moment was particularly religiously significant, but rather personally significant. It was a moment when the term, a leap of faith, took on some new meaning for me. I literally had leapt and had to have faith, not only in myself, but others. Faith and trust went hand in hand, and thankfully, those were strong hands!


What have you done that has put you outside your comfort zone? How did you feel afterwards?

Cubicles or Cubbies

I am sure we all remember a time when we were desperate and would have given anything to be treated as an adult. For me, this was junior high, those tween or early teen years, the years when you long for more independence, although aren’t truly ready for an increased level of responsibility. You feel too cool for your once favorite toys and cartoons, and tossed aside are Barbie dolls, baby dolls, action figures, matchbox cars, playdoh, tea parties and a plethora of other things that once represented childhood happiness. As adults we often find ourselves longing for the days of our childhood, a time in our lives when things were so much simpler, a time when so much responsibility didn’t rest on our shoulders. So, when exactly did things change? When did we go from wanting to be grown-ups to wanting to not be, at least all the time, day in and day out? Can we really take time to be "grown-down?"

I think we can and that we should. I am sure most of us, if we are honest with ourselves, would love some time in our busiest days for the things we used to love the most. Why can’t we watch cartoons in the morning while we sit and eat our cereal? Who says snacktime was just for preschool and that recess is a thing of the past? I think we should make time in our days, especially the busiest ones for these simple pleasures. Instead of the news in morning, tune into the Disney channel and watch something that will make you giggle. Take a snack to work and enjoy it rather than running out for a grande something-or-other from Starbucks. And recess, well most offices don’t have playgrounds (and if yours does I want to know where you work!), but make time for a 5 minute stroll around the block, or sit and chat with a co-worker, something that is fun and relaxing and not WORK!

And, we should make time for these simple things in our evenings and weekends, too. Play tag, blow bubbles, get out some crayons and color. Have a tea party, play on the swings in the park, ride your bike, eat a popsicle or have a juice box. Think of what you enjoyed most as a child, things that in that awkward tween time you would have rather died than admitted enjoying. Those are things we should go back to, the things that made us happy, innocently happy. Things that make you grin and giggle, like blowing bubbles with a straw or trying to find words in your bowl of alphabet soup. Play dress up, look for worms, climb a tree, build a fort, use your imagination. Perhaps these things seem silly to you now, but at a time in life when you had all the time in the world, they were the best way to spend your days.

I think all adults should challenge themselves to not take themselves so seriously and to occasionally step back from their day planners, their emails, their board meetings and their Blackberries and back to a time when the only plans in your day were to have fun; you got excited about checking the mailbox, meeting friends on your bike in the park and blackberries were a great snack that your mom gave you. Oh, and don’t forge the juice box to wash them down.