Book #21

I did something hard last Sunday--I played the piano in Primary.  It's a long story how it came about, but I suspected I would have to jump in and play so I practiced all week.  The chorister said that she would swap places with me, but I said it would be good for my kids to see me do something hard.  Let me share a little history about my piano playing skills.  I took lessons for about 8 years and finally got permission to quit.  I never loved playing.  After quitting, I would sit down and plink around every once in awhile.  Shortly before I got married I was called to play in Relief Society.  I was a nervous wreck every time I played.  I haven't played in church since.  I'll play for Family Home Evening if it's a song that Braedi can't play, but that's it.  I don't think I'm good enough to accompany.  But, I stepped out of my comfort zone and did something hard. 

"You can do hard things" is a phrase we use a lot in our family, so when someone told me there was a book with that title I bought it.  Too bad it took me 2 years to read it.  The premise behind it is that teenagers have too low of expectations set on them.  People expect them to spend their teen years partying and relaxing.  The authors disagree and set out to prove that teens can do hard things.  Even though the book is geared toward teens and shares only teen experiences, the principles apply to all ages. 

The authors (who are 16 year old twins) share 5 kinds of hard things: things outside your comfort zone, things that go beyond what is expected or required, things that are too big to accomplish alone, things that don't earn an immediate payoff, and things that challenge the cultural norm.  They also give tips to accomplish those hard things. 

I've learned that I like to be comfortable, but the more I step out of my comfort zone the easier it is.  A couple of years ago I decided that I would try to attend more of Arizona's TJEd group activities.  They typically meet far away from me, but I felt a push to meet more like-minded people.  It was uncomfortable for me because it was new and I didn't know anyone.  But because I did, so many doors have opened up for me and I have learned so much.

Doing things that go beyond what is required is an area I need to work on.  I will often do the bare minimum and avoid pushing myself because I know it will be hard.  I see this in my scholar studies.  I have a goal to read 45 minutes everyday.  I do that, but I'm a lazy reader.  I also have a goal to write about each book I read, but my writing is more of a book report than ideas.  I do what I said I would, but no more. 

Working with my Primary presidency and other groups where different personalities are involved is hard.  Sometimes there is confrontation or difficult situations, but being a leader means that I have to do hard things.  It means that I have to work with others to accomplish our goals.  There are others areas of my life that are hard--homeschooling challenges the norm, being patient and speaking kindly, exercising daily and eating healthy, living the gospel, communicating about tough subjects, and so much more.  I have to remind myself daily that I can do hard things.