Scenes from My Life: Green Ice Cream

From the moment I crossed the river and entered Illinois everything is different. The people, the traffic, the roads that charge you to drive on them {I still don’t understand that one}.

However, once I entered her home I felt comfort, like I was in my own home {although cleaner, and with a bigger kitchen}. And even though this comfort surrounded me like a warm blanket, there were moments during the weekend where I felt naked, vulnerable and outside my comfort zone.

It all began with the green ice cream.

“It’s mint,” she told me.

I looked at her skeptically. I’ve read her blog I know what she sneaks into smoothies and macaroni. Bravely I took a bite, ready just in case my phobia of green food decided to impede my swallow reflex. As the creamy sweetness filled my mouth, I knew I had nothing to fear. She would never lead me astray.

As each day passed, I encountered situations that made me face my fears, ones that stretched me beyond the safety of my boundaries.

During Saturday’s Creative Soul retreat, I comprehended what it was like to create without a delete button. Placing the brush on the canvas and trusting again that someone would guide me; holding my hand as I delved into this new medium of creativity that made perfectionists like me squirm. “We learn to accept our mistakes,” she said, “to cover them up with something beautiful.”

Words I need to live by each day.

I even went to church. Yes, I know I’m surprised too that lightning didn’t strike. At the end of a long weekend where my mind was open to new possibilities, it seemed fitting to venture even further. Testing the waters even if it was with a pinky toe. The waters were calm, and warm, like the love that shined down on me through the ENTIRE weekend.

In only two days I stepped outside my comfort zone, and banished fear, doubt and apprehension. If I can accomplish that in ONLY two days, imagine what a lifetime of taking chances could be like.

I’m ready to find out.

Bring on more green ice cream.