As a young mom and teacher, I tried very hard to say yes as often as I could. As long as a request wasn't dangerous, illegal, or just plain wrong, I would try to find a way to make things happen for my children and my students. I like to have fun as much as anyone, and I have found that being open to new ideas and experiences has made for an interesting life.
The little yeses led to sleeping outside on the trampoline, having breakfast for supper, going to the circus, planting snapdragons, reading the Boxcar Children in the tree house, eating from the ice cream carton with spoons, water balloon fights, opening birthday presents early, watching the sunrise and a solar eclipse, winter walks in the snow, learning to downhill ski at 48, Renaissance Faires, buying a drum set...
The big yeses led to body surfing with my kids at Myrtle Beach, road trips to Colorado and California, meeting the man of my dreams in the Smokey Mountains, accepting his marriage proposal just after sunrise in those very same mountains, moving back to Illinois...
Saying yes to so many wonderful things life has to offer led me to where I am today. I find myself happily married to a man who seems to share my philosophy. We indulge each other in our passions, knowing that the same will be done for us.
Why not say yes? If I can't come up with a very good reason to say no, I always try to muster up the courage and enthusiasm to say yes.
"Find a way to say yes to things. Say yes to invitations to a new country, say yes to meet new friends, say yes to learn something new. Yes is how you get your first job, and your next job, and your spouse, and even your kids. Even if it's a bit edgy, a bit out of your comfort zone, saying yes means that you will do something new, meet someone new, and make a difference. Yes lets you stand out in a crowd, be the optimist, see the glass full, be the one everyone comes to. Yes is what keeps us all young."
-Eric Schmidt
I try to take your advice, but sometimes it just has to be no, not necessarily because it my be dangerous, but just because I can't QUITE work up the yes. I am working on it. I did do a sack race when I was 70. It was fun until the ground won.
ReplyDeleteStella, you get to say yes on your terms. Good for you on the sack race. Sorry the ground one, but you are the winner for living out loud!
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