Our lives get smaller when we get older in ways we can not prevent. They also get smaller when we are so busy with day to day living that we forget to poke our heads up and see that great big world out there. They get smaller when we get set in our ways - and more reluctant to try new things in case we don't like them. Lima beans might still taste as awful as they did when I was a kid. But if I don't try again, how would I know?

We may not be able to prevent some of the ways our worlds get smaller, but curiosity, interest, and an adventurous spirit can expand them in other ways. Here are a few ideas:

1. Try a different food. Something exotic - maybe papaya or some other exotic fruit you've heard of but never tried. Or maybe lima beans. I hated them as a kid, but maybe I'd like them now. Well, maybe.


2. Learn a phrase from another language. Like how to say "Hello," in Finnish, or "Have a good day," in Japanese. Try them out on friends and family.


3. Take a different route to work. Okay, my work is in another room of the house, there's only so many different ways to get there. But I could take a different route when I drive to Alliston for groceries.


4. Listen to a different radio station or put on a different type of music for a bit. Wonder why people like it and if you ever could, too.


5. For more fun with food, try having breakfast foods at suppertime and suppertime foods for breakfast. I don't usually associate salad with breakfast, but it could be interesting. Weird, but interesting.


6. Get a map of another city or look at one online. See what the names of the streets are near the centre of the city. One great way to see what a neighbourhood is like is to shop there. So look up the nearby shops and see how people in that neighborhood live.


7. Try a new sport or hobby. Chess or ski-jumping, knitting or star-gazing, it doesn't matter what it is as long as it's new.


8. Say "Hello" to your next door neighbor. He's lived there for 2 years now. It's time.


9. Go to a different church. Whether you are a regular or not, it can be enlightening to see how other denominations and even other faiths handle their services.

We don't have to like what we find when we explore, sometimes a look will tell us that we're in the right place. But we need to be curious to keep life opening up for us. It's never too late to expand our horizons. Even for lima beans.

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All content Copyright © Janet Dane unless otherwise stated.