For several years I had a Sunday morning ritual of saying a prayer, dipping my hand into a bag of words, and asking for what I needed most in the coming week.

I’d record the process and then improvise the thoughts that came to mind when the word of the week, or “WOW!” was revealed.

On one special morning, both my mom and sister happened to visit, and we did the ritual together.

That video is especially precious now.  It's shocking to me how my sister NEVER ages and how different I look from ten years ago. But the real treasure is seeing my mom's sweet smile and hearing her speak, because we lost her in 2021.

Somehow, on a random Saturday in 2026, YouTube brought that very video up as a memory, and because I felt especially nostalgic for mom, I listened to the clip.

That Sunday, Mom did the honors and picked the word “exploration.” 

A decade later, listening to the conversation that followed encouraged my own heart and inspired me to write about this beautiful concept. 

When I hear the word exploration, I immediately think of uncharted territory. I think of maps and compasses and brave souls who decided there had to be more beyond the horizon.

But exploration is not just about climbing mountains or boarding planes to faraway places.

Sometimes exploration is much smaller and much more personal.

Sometimes it is saying yes to the thing that scares you.

Sometimes it is finally taking the class, making the phone call, auditioning for the play, submitting the proposal, going on the trip, writing the book, starting the business, or simply talking to the person you have convinced yourself would never understand you.

Exploration begins with curiosity.

Because if you're not curious, you don't explore anything. You stay in your own little safe world. You keep eating at the same restaurants, having the same conversations, driving the same routes, and making the same excuses.

Curiosity is what keeps us young. It whispers, “What if?”

What if I actually tried?

What if I surprised myself?

What if there's something wonderful waiting for me on the other side of uncomfortable?

My sister Shirlee has always loved the play Our Town. Not casually loved it. Loved it. She's seen it countless times and knows every scene by heart. Then one day, she saw an ad in the paper that a local community theater was holding auditions.

Now let me tell you what she did not say.

She did not say, “Absolutely! I was born for this!”

Nope.

She said all the things most of us say when life offers us an invitation.

“That’s crazy.”

“I don’t have time.”

“I’m not an actress.”

“I have no experience.”

Sound familiar?

But somehow, the stars aligned. One day worked with her schedule. One little door opened.

So she went.

And she was terrified.

She walked into that audition room and saw all these people who knew one another from years in the community theater world. She could have turned around and gone home.

But instead, she stayed.

And then something beautiful happened.

She realized she didn't have to be the star of the show. She didn't have to be the best one there. She did not have to prove anything.

She just had to be willing.

She left that audition feeling proud of herself just for showing up.

And then the phone rang.

She got the part.

Not because she had the most experience or the most polished performance, but because the director said they were so impressed by her enthusiasm.

I love that!

Because sometimes what we lack in ability, we make up for in heart.

Exploration is not always comfortable. In fact, it rarely is.

But there is something inside each of us that longs to stretch, to grow, to try, to see what might happen if we stop talking ourselves out of our own lives.

Recently, I was watching the animated movie Sing, and one of the characters has this incredible voice but is terrified to get on stage. The producer of the show tells her, “Whenever you’re afraid, just sing.”

I have thought about that line ever since.

Whenever you are afraid…just sing.

Or write.

Or speak.

Or ask.

Or apply.

Or go.

Whatever your version is, do that.

Because the thing you want is often sitting just on the other side of the thing you are afraid to do.

So maybe this is the week you stop talking yourself out of it.

Maybe this is the week you become an explorer.

Oh, the places you’ll go!