“Here Aunty….hold this for me,” my seven year old nephew said urgently as he dumped a loonie* sized, live crab into my hands.

“Don’t let him get away,” he called over his shoulder as he ran off to find more crabs.

I gazed at the crab in my hand, trying not to freak out. 

I had never held a live crab before.  All my instincts (and their pincers) had always told me NOT to touch or hold a live crab, yet here I was, now with a handful of live crabs because he had just delivered more. 

Deep breath.  I guess I’m a crab juggler now!

The next afternoon I found myself standing beside a shallow pool of water on the edge of the ocean with a flat, oval board in my hands.

“You just throw the board across the top of the water and jump on it with both feet at the same time.  It’s easy!” explained my nephew.

“Oookayyy…”  I was not convinced.  After several running starts, tumbles into the  water and about as much grace as a bull in a china shop I managed to figure out how to skim board.  I think it will take a long time to become passable at skim boarding but at least I was willing to give it a try.

When was the last time you tried something for the first time?** We spent a week  on vacation with my brother, sister-in-law and nephew on a somewhat remote,  wilderness island off the coast of British Columbia this summer and everyday  presented me with the opportunity to try something new.  Some things were  challenging, some things were scary and some things were a bit icky and smelly  but they all had the same outcome – I expanded my horizons and built my confidence in my ability to handle anything (especially slimy things!).

As we begin to transition out of summer and into the fall, what can you try that you  have never tried before?  You don’t need to stick your hand into the crab tank at Red Lobster but maybe you could sign up for a class on something completely new to you or if you are always revving things up in September, maybe you could try doing less this fall.  Or this is the perfect opportunity for you to try one of my Way of  the Happy Woman® mini retreats coming up on October 3^rd.  Whatever you choose, I hope you can give yourself the opportunity to try something new and experience yourself in a completely new way!

Love,