Say YES More

One thing about being sick (again) in Bangkok - it gives you more time to read. As I battled a respiratory tract infection over the last week, I also finally got the chance to finish a book lent to me by my good friend and fellow English teacher, Anna.

This book, entitled "Yes Man", was the basis for the 2008 movie starring Jim Carrey. While I wasn't incredibly struck by the movie (sometimes Carrey just needs to tone it with the odd facial contortions and the extreme over-acting), I did find greater meaning in the book. Written by a Brit named Danny Wallace, the novel is based upon the author's true story of a personal quest which began after an unusually inspirational experience on a London bus. Danny had felt he was saying "No" to too much in his life, staying in and letting experiences pass him by. After listening to Danny's plight, the stranger sitting next to him on the bus jump-started his journey to embrace life with three little words: "Say Yes More." After that, Danny made it his personal mission to say "Yes" to EVERY (and I do mean, EVERY) opportunity that strolled his way.

While the quest to say "Yes" leads him through some pretty hairy moments: third-wheeling a date with his ex-girlfriend and her new dude, almost losing his life savings to an e-mail scheme involving a 'fugitive Saudi prince', and receiving a rockin' mullet hairstyle; "Yes" also leads him to some of the best moments of his life: getting a monumental promotion at work, traveling around the world, and meeting the woman of his dreams. In the end, it was saying "Yes" that made him feel alive again, after feeling like life had gotten away from him.

It dawned on me, while reading this book: I am, or at least I hope to be, a "Yes Woman." I have always believed that it is the things we DON'T do that we regret, more than the things we DO. Okay, so I have definitely done things in life that were dodgy at best and not to be repeated (most of them fueled by some sort of foreign substance... sorry parents). But those decisions have been made, and the deeds have been done, and do I really regret any of them? Nope. So maybe saying "Yes" a few too many times at the bar encouraged me to streak my college campus during the dead of winter. (I might add that Naked Quad Run is a school-sponsored activity every year at Tufts University; look it up.) But saying "Yes" also brought me to university in Boston in the first place. It has brought me all over the world, especially here to Thailand. It has brought me to the tops of mountains, to the center stage, and to the most amazing people. It has brought me to love. And for that, I am forever a believer in the power of "Yes".

Think about your own life. What do you regret? Is it what you did, or what you have yet to do? If it's the latter, as I assume, then think about what's holding you back. Why are you saying "No" when it's so much more interesting to say "Yes"? Say it with me: Y-E-S.

There. Was that so hard?