This post has been sponsored by Friendship Dairies® All thoughts and opinions are our own. 
As a child, I was always the quietest and least adventurous of my siblings. While my brother enjoyed skateboarding and surfing with his friends, my sister loved acting in school plays and playing rugby. One would think that I would follow suit and pursue something that got my adrenaline pumping, but in all honesty, I was always most comfortable drawing in my sketchpads or rescuing stray animals in the neighborhood. Even now, as adults, our interests may have changed, but our personalities have not.
If you frequently read our blog, you know that my sister and I are together quite often with our children. And whenever there are school breaks, we love planning fun activities and mini day trips that we can do as one big happy family. Our adventures have taken us all over Long Island, but truth be told, our trips almost always revolve around animals or swimming.
As summer quickly came to an end, my sister suggested one last hurrah before school started. She claimed she had a great way to combine animals and swimming into one fantastic family day trip. Knowing my sister, I prepped myself for something unusual, but I had no idea she was going to suggest: swimming with sharks.
Yes, that’s right. My sister eagerly told my children and I that we were going to go swimming with sharks, rays, and tropical fish at the local aquarium.
As my children screamed with excitement, I shuddered at this idea. My sister saw the look of apprehension on my face and she was really confused. She honestly thought that I would love this exciting combination of two of my most favorite things: swimming and animals.
So, I understand why she looked so confused. On paper, this really should be the perfect activity for me. But in reality, my mind was flooded with all sorts of tiny terrifying thoughts swirling about my head.
What if the water was freezing?
What if I was scared?
What if my kids freaked out?
What if something touched me?
What if something could bite me?
The list went on and on. And even though these were all valid fears, they were really putting a damper on this potentially fun adventure. Reluctantly, I told my sister that I needed to think about it, which caused my kids to become naturally upset. They thought this was a brilliant idea and wanted to drop everything and get to the aquarium as fast as they could.
The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the thoughts were only scary if I imagined doing it alone. But, I wasn’t going to be alone. I was going to be with my family and knowing that I could grip on to my sister’s arm or get cheers of encouragement from the kids, I knew I would be able to do it.
That’s the beauty of friendship.
Friends – whether they be family, schoolmates, or coworkers – lift us up when we’re feeling down, give us strength when we’re not sure we have any and help us push past our fears when we want to.
Even though I was reluctant to go swimming in a tank full of sea creatures at first, this experience turned out to be one of the most fun things that I did all summer. I’m so grateful that my family helped me step outside of my comfort zone and try something new!
Have fun and try something new,
Daniele
About Friendship Dairies
Friendship Dairies® www.friendshipdairies.com has been making high-quality cottage cheese, sour cream, farmer cheese and buttermilk for the last 100 years. As a product, they have integrity. As a brand, they hold together, stay true to who they are, and encourage others to do the same. They’re purveyors of friendship and believe that friends open each other up to new experiences. They turn their loyalists into advocates, and their easy, crowd-pleasing recipes prove just how surprisingly fun sharing friendship can be.
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