the older we get.....

the older we get, the more nerve shows up.
we have the balls to ask for what we want, because we know that the worst thing that will happen is that we will be told, "no", and that's okay.

I realized this at an early age, but did not always put it into practice.
Now I am older, and perhaps a little wiser,...and I ask for what I want.  Phrase your question carefully,.... and I have to tell you that I hear "no" far more often than I would like, but that does not kill me.... nor does it make me stronger.  What is does is make me sad..... and more lonely.

Anyway, a friend of mine goes to a lot of concerts,... she likes a particular style of music, and she pursues those bands, and manages to befriend the musicians.  She may not fully realize exactly how cool that is! but she achieves it because she is not afraid to ask.  I know that she does not see the magic of it, but she is blown away when they tell her "yes" and then join her for a chat, or for an adventure.  (You GO girl!)

Back when I was still in school I had a friend who's mother had died some years earlier... so the dad was the only parent.  My friend had two younger brothers.  They were all teenagers at the time I am talking about here.  So, their mom had been the "easy" parent, and the thing they heard a lot was: "wait until your father gets home". Dad was the disciplinarian.  They were a little afraid of him.  They did not have conversations with dad.  One day they came home to find me having a conversation with their dad.  They were flummoxed.  "What were you doing?" they demanded.  "Talking about television programs." simple.  Their dad and I had a nice conversation about television programs we remembered from the 1960's.  But that was when it really hit home for me -they were afraid to talk to their own dad, who was a pretty good guy.  The three of them wanted to go out for the evening, with me in my car, and they were afraid to ask their dad if they could go.  I sent the 3 of them to the living room with instructions to ask their dad if they could go, and if they could stay out until 9:00pm.  They were shocked at his response, which was not only a "yes" but they were also told that they could stay out until 10:00pm.  It blew their minds.  I was delighted that they had learned this simple thing.

I learned something too..... Never, ever be afraid to ask for something.  Think of what is the worst thing that will happen.... no one gets killed for asking for something.  The worst thing that can happen is "NO".  If you cannot wrap your head around that idea, ...well, then I am very sorry for you.