Alright, so I told you how much fun I have been having watching Kyle take tennis lessons, right? Well last week I bought a racket of my own and headed to the Plumas Courts for an adult beginner course. I have to admit it was incredibly intimidating. There I was sitting in my cool, air-conditioned car wearing a t-shirt and cotton capri sweats with a brand new racket that I pulled off the shelf an hour before. I considered turning around and leaving but I didn't. I summoned the courage to join the already forming group. My coach is Phil and he has been a USTA certified instructor for 8 years. There are two other women in my group. Both are total beginners like me. They are nice and friendly and supportive and they make me glad I didn't turn away that first night.
I gotta tell you, I am absolutely loving tennis. I took one class and immediately booked a private lesson for the next day. It was an hour in the middle of a ridiculously hot day but I did not care. Phil gently told me I should consider buying some tennis clothes and tennis shoes. Point taken. So it was 97 degrees outside and I was running back and forth hitting forehands and backhands while totally inappropriately dressed and having the time of my life. I missed a couple of group lessons during our vacation and so tonight was my first night back. This time I came more prepared. I took a quick trip to Sports Authority this morning and bought some appropriate tennis clothes so I could at least look the part when I miss my overheads. I have to admit that I was much more comfortable and this whole "dry-fit" thing is amazing.
Trying new things can be intimidating, but so worth it in the end. I feel like I don't have an athletic bone in my body so trying anything physical can take an exceptional amount of courage for me. A couple of years back I summoned the courage to try a Pilate's class. This it "true Pilates" on the reformer. The type of Pilates that feels oh so easy while you are doing it and will leave you paralyzed with soreness for a week. I tried it, muddled through the first couple of classes and was hooked. I took Pilates classes 4 times/week for about a year. Then as much as I loved it I just couldn't justify the $250/month fee. The last few months I have gone back to Pilates but with less intensity than the first time around. The moment I walked "back" in I was greeted by all my old friends. The teachers even refer to me when they describe the correct way to do certain movements. Imagine that, clumsy me being an example of great form.
About 15 years ago I stepped into a gym for the first time in my life. I had just moved to Las Vegas and was at a critical point in my life. I was horribly lost and depressed. I started going to the gym as a way to have some quiet time and think my way out of my funk. I couldn't even turn on the treadmill when I started. Soon I was running 6 miles/day 6 days/week. I felt so powerful. I was doing something I never thought I could do - and I was enjoying it. My new found appreciation for my body led me to take a nutrition class at the local community college. I realized that Nutrition was the career I had spent my life looking for. I quit my job and went back to college full-time. By putting myself out there and trying something I was certain I could never do, I not only found confidence and a sense of peace, I found a passion for physiology and science. That is a whole other subject because I always considered myself absolutely clueless when it comes to science. Once again I sucked it up and gave it a try and here I am 10 years later totally immersed in a science-based career and loving it all.
A few months back I finally succumbed to my friends peer pressure and gave scrapbooking a try. Yep, totally hooked. I love the creative outlet. I love the process and the mediums. I love learning new techniques. I love talking to interesting women who I wouldn't normally talk to while we scrapbook into the wee hours of the night. When people ask to look at my layouts I always start out by saying "I am really new to scrapbooking - just been doing it a couple of months" as a sort of way of apologizing. A couple weeks back the ladies at my table told me I have to stop saying I am "new" because my layouts are way too good for someone who is "new". Wow. Nice compliment.
When I was sharing some of my scrapbook layouts with co-workers, one person said, "so what are you going to do with all of this stuff when you quit?". Someone else in the room said "ouch". Person #1 went on to say that "Yolanda always starts things and then she quits. That is just how she is." Huh. I called my sister and told her the story and then I told Todd the story. My sister said she doesn't see me as a quitter, she views it more as a curiosity on my part to try new things. I can accept that - it even sounds like a cool personality trait to have. A few days later Todd came back to me and said "you know, Yo, you do try lots of new things. And when you try new things you go full-speed ahead. There is never any middle ground. You totally immerse yourself in whatever it is you are doing and when you are done you take what you learned and you move on to something else". That is why I love my husband.
So, I suggest you go try something you have never done before and then tell me about it. I would love to hear what you learned and I could care less if you ever did it again. Let me suggest Swing Dance lessons. That was something else I tried a couple years back (and then quit).
