Doing something for the first time!!

Do you remember the excitement of the child that saw the mirror for the first time and realised it was their own reflection there??

Do you remember how they cringed nibbling on the lime slice?

Do you recollect how every new sense of smell, sight, feel, taste and hearing made them squeal with joy??

And then they stumbled upon Cocomelon most probably!!

But when did we do something for the first time and enjoy the excitement, fear and every other emotion that comes along? During our Design Thinking class our Professor asked us “When was the last time you did something new?” Luckily a few saved the face of the batch and had learnt something like Salsa etc in the recent past!! But I couldn’t recollect when did I ever take up the challenge of doing something and instead have been trying to make a secured routine for me!!

And then amidst the Project reports, assignments, presentation, case studies and placement comes along the leadership lab which supposedly was to be at Khandala but instead was in such nooks of the campus we’ve never discovered!! Oh yeah, it definitely was colder than Khandala and we did have the whole bunch in it’s best unhinged self which was a pretty good experience!!

But the highlight would definitely be the opportunity to step into the Bhavna’s Nature and Adventure camp where I’ve always seen the peacock welcoming us, amazingly cute dogs tempting me to go and pet them, chipmunks jumping about the whole place and the noises of the different birds within the premise and the wild ones visiting!! This time we not only were allowed to see the many more living beings within the premise (including, not limited to turtles, rabbits, fishes and snakes) but we also were given the first hand experience on many outdoor adventures!!

I’m the kind that turns my back on any activity be it indoor or outdoor!! I vividly remember bowling for the first time!! Everytime we’ve been out, I always back out and let others take the game, but the first time I was asked to try it, I loved it!! But otherwise, I never ever try my hand at anything that involves height or physical exertion!!

Our first activity was Rock climbing!! And for the first time in my life I didn’t feel scared nor felt like running away!! I felt confident to just “try it out” which never has been my first reaction in my whole lifetime!! 25 feet wall seemed impossible, but all I told myself was “do as much as you can, and then two more” and that’s what I did!! I did what I could and then pushed myself two more!! And I did give up when my fingers seemed to give up!! But the security that someone was holding on gave me strength!! I was definitely pulled up a couple of steps but then the feeling of climbing up that podium gave a new sense of confidence!! 

The next was Rappeling!! I trusted gravity to pull me down and so I just let go!! Although in the struggle of climbing down in a certain angle I did lose a shoe and was a pretty laughable incident climbing down with one shoe, I am sure it’s gonna be a memory not just for me but the two that watched my comic and laughed with me!! 

I loved the rifle!! Showed me I have precision because all three shots were almost on the same point though miles (exaggerated) away from the A4 sheet called Target, and yeah it did have markings and bulls eye which I couldn’t ever aim!! Gonna practice shooting though!!

The next thing was team building games which were fun.. And then the whole task of multiple challenging activities which were a mixed bag of excitement, fear and ending with the zipline where I felt so proud of myself for doing all those activities whithout even having a hesitation of a moment.

I have always been a person who likes to be always on the safe ground (which generally means standing on the ground). But I am surprised at myself and even proud that I did not hold back myself and took the leap of "trying it out". There is a great thrill and excitement of doing things for the first time, so why not take some time out to do something that you always have wanted to do!! And yeah, this past year I did many things for the first time, be it singing in public, dancing (and discovering I like them), cooking new recipes and now outdoor activities too.. Life is short, live with no regrets!! Enjoy the thrill and excitement of doing something new, even if it means trying a new cuisine or dish! You may end up feeling happy or learning a lesson, but definitely it is something worth. Peace and love!