My husband is crazy about fly fishing. I, on the other hand, am not. Until recently, the discrepancy hadn’t been much of an issue. A combination of luck and cleverness on my part had helped me successfully dodge the fly-fishing bullet since our nuptials, 19 years ago. We had kids soon after getting married, which meant there was little time together, early on…coupled with the fact that we live far away from extended family, and you can see why “together time” was next to impossible. Lucky for me, as soon as my son was old enough to hold a fishing pole, fly-fishing became synonymous with father/son bonding time, which, conveniently, got me “off the hook.”
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a girly-girl who’s afraid of getting dirty or wet or waking up at 4:30 a.m. I’ve avoided fly-fishing for one reason and one reason only: It didn’t sound like fun. I don’t care how beautiful the surroundings, the mere thought of casting over and over again all day made my eyelids droop.
But as it is with everything in life, circumstances change. My children are grown-up and my son prefers to do things other than fish with Dad. He’s now 18 and my daughter is 16, which means we can leave them safely home alone. As soon as this revelation hit, another one rapidly followed . . . my jig was up! My husband’s long-standing fishing partner was no longer a given. I knew it was time to face the inevitable.
I really didn’t want to go, but I made up my mind to do something I didn’t want to for the right reasons. So I put on a pair of my yuckiest sneakers and my best happy face and joined my husband on his next fly-fishing adventure. And you know what? It wasn’t horrible. The anxiety that once surrounded the “thought of fly-fishing” is gone because I understand what’s involved, and I gained new insight into the world and who my husband is now. I’m actually open to going again! In the end, I showed my husband that the second half of our lives together didn’t have to be all about me. I’ve matured and I’ve proved it to both of us!
Why do we recoil at the thought of attempting new things? And why is it we can find a hundred reasons to support our inclination to leave life as it is and not venture out?
The unfamiliar is fertile ground for growth. Maybe it’s time to consider going to a VMA meeting, speaking at a conference, giving a presentation to future veterinarians or organizing a fund raising event for a local shelter. Or maybe it’s time to try fly-fishing. I have found that when I pause to allow myself to be open to a new experience, I’m always happy I did. There is something to be said about taking a risk, creating a little internal friction, and allowing yourself to be open to learning something new. Moving outside your proverbial “comfort zone” isn’t always comfortable, but it can push you to a higher level of success in your personal and professional life.