I showed up at my church's sign making party for the Pride parade. I didn't know if I would know anyone beyond the church staff but I went anyway. When I arrived I sat down with someone whose name I knew but who I didn't know all that well. And then as the night wore on, I found myself circulating and talking to people I did not really know. Some of their faces were familiar, others were not.
And it all felt comfortable in a way I hadn't expected. The conversations flowed fairly well. I got good at finding a way to get people to remind me of their name. Someone even complimented that they will have to remember the way I phrased it and use it themself. (If only I could remember the words I used!)
A couple of years ago, I would have only showed up at such an event with someone I knew well and I would have picked a table and stayed put, careful of who I interacted with.
This was a nice change of pace. This was a stretch of myself that is getting easier each time I do it.
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