Why not say yes?
Let’s talk resilience. There are lots of ways to practice it. One of my favorites involves saying yes to new experiences. “What have I got to lose?”, is the question I ask myself, over and over. Oh, there is always some risk of loss when throwing caution to the wind, but what about the less obvious losses inherent in saying no?
A long-ago friend, someone I hadn’t seen in 28 years, invited me to go sailing this winter. Florida to the Bahamas. Why not? Some of my friends were amazed at my decision to go. They had lots of “why nots” in mind. But, really, why not? Not going would mean a 44th winter in Vermont for me. I love winter, but why not miss one to do something new?
We didn’t sail. There were some unforeseen problems with the boat. After three weeks of trying to get a new engine working safely enough to count on, we decided to go on a road trip. I could have come home instead. I could have flown to the Bahamas from Florida to visit a friend who lives there. I had never dreamed of a road trip in Florida. But, why not?
Later this week, I will fly to Costa Rica, a country I have never visited. I will not travel as a tourist. A two-week writer’s residency is my calling there. Why not? Well, I have no idea what my writing project will be. And while this gig is affordable, as retreats go, it will cost me something, as will my airfare, but why not? The second half of March in Vermont or Costa Rica? I love travel but I am not fond of being a tourist. I tend to travel where I can visit people and stay with them and live their lives. I will stay with a writer and three other writers, and I will write. I hope I will write. I am hoping for inspiration after arrival. I am taking a chance on this. Why not?
I have experienced some very significant losses over the past several years. How do I cope? Partly by saying “Yes, why not?”
Today’s prompt: How do you practice resilience? What do you do to keep your life rich in the face of loss? Do you say yes? Do you say why not? Or is there something else that you do?