I’m part of a new family – 35 mentors for my program -- and our group completed the first night of training.  Tonight, we went through the cornerstones of the New Pathways program: commitment, responsibility, possibility and support, to help the youth and mentors grow throughout the nine months.  To better explain the cornerstones,  they asked each mentor to think of something they liked to buy, then think of the characteristics (such as a certain style, color, etc.) leading you to purchase the item.
 
So my shopping poison is shoes, and particularly, I like black suede heels.  After that, the mentor coaches asked us to think of something completely opposite of what we would normally buy. For me… –orange pleather heels with bows. YUCK!  They asked how I would react if my friend asked me to try it on.  I say No way! it’s not my style, Then they dropped the real question, “How could you know what it would look or feel like if you never tried it on?”    
The course leaders explained about being open to the possibility of “trying on” new experiences.  Perhaps it would be eating sushi, or running a marathon, applying for graduate school.  They explained the youth we would meet in a few weeks, would be closed off to the many possibilities of life: getting a summer job, taking an advanced class, stop using drugs and alcohol, and we would be their coaches to support them in the "try on" process.
 
 My question to you readers is: What new experience are you “trying on” today?