I was at a party last month and deep in conversation with a friend. As we were leaving she remarked that she admired Mark and I and thought we were brave.
Brave??? I’m terrified of the dentist, heights, merging traffic, runny eggs, any envelope from the state, crickets, yeast, the Visa bill, pain that lasts longer than ten minutes………..
I had to turn around and ask her what she meant.
“You guys put yourself out there and go for it.”
Oh, so that’s how it looks to somebody else. Be it writing or biking or whatever else we pursue, we may have lost some of our fear, but I’d hardly call that brave. If we were to fall flat on our face in any of these endeavors it would not be but for the thousandth time, and lookie here, we’re both still standing.
This week I took Mallie Bee to the pediatrician.. The doctor’s kids and mine went to school together and she is one of my favorite people. I had heard she was working a retail job on the side and asked her about it. “Oh yes,” she said, “I love it. It’s always been something I’ve wanted to do.” A doctor selling handbags?
“Next,” she said, “I’m going to try waitressing. I’ve already talked to somebody who’s willing to show me the ropes.” A doctor waiting tables?
Mallie Bee got some advice on her beat-up feet and I got a booster shot of the failure immunization. It was a good day to be amongst the doctor and the dancer…………….
The ones who stuck their toe outside the box and changed the way they thought about everything.
