Have you ever been really scared to try something you’ve never done before? Were there scary scenarios circulating through your head? It was a scorching hot summer day in Maryland. At the time, my grandparents, parents, siblings and I were all staying at my cousin's house.

     “Go play outside! You guys have been sitting here all day,” yelled my Aunt Liz.

     “Alright,” I replied without protesting. My cousins, brothers and I went and changed out of our pajamas. Once we all had changed we rushed to go outside. With my eyes and lips closed, I hastily put on bug spray and sprinted outside.  

     “Let’s go to the creek!” said my cousin Liam eagerly. 

     “There’s a creek here?” my little brother Nathan replied in amazement.

     “Sure, we can go, but we’re going to need one of our parents,” Ethan, my older brother, replied.

     “I’ll go get my dad,” I blurted. I ran inside as fast as a rocket and asked my dad to help us take care of my little cousin Nigel while we were in the creek. He glanced at my mom and Aunt Liz as if he was asking for permission.

     “Sure, I guess,” he casually replied. I opened the door, which led into the garage, so he could grab his shoes. I also passed him the sunscreen and bug spray. Then I ran outside to find everyone else running around the yard in circles. Ethan noticed my dad and I standing there confused, wondering what was going on.

     “Took you long enough,” he said while rolling his eyes. 

     “Can you stay with Nigel? We want to explore the creek.” 

     “Why can’t you take him to the creek too?” questioned my dad.

     “We don’t want him to get hurt. Since we’re going to be jumping around and playing he might get hurt.”

     “Fine, I’ll look after him. But we're going to be in the creek too. I have to keep an eye on you kids, so don’t go too far.” 

      “Alright,” we all said in unison. 

     We made our way down the hill, past the bushes and into the creek. My eyes widened. The creek was absolutely stunning. The water was gleaming, and I could see the small fishes moving in the murky water. The little flowers danced gently as the breeze hit them.

     “This is beautiful!” I squealed, admiring the scenic beauty of the creek.

     I turned my head to look at the others to see them hopping on the slippery rocks. “Come on, Sophia!” said Liam, my other cousin. I didn’t move from my spot and watched the others giggling and having fun.

     “Be careful!” I told Nathan as he was jumping from one rock to the other.  “Come on! It’s fun!” he replied as if he had no cares in the world. I hesitated, trying to convince myself to jump. It took a minute before I found my confidence again. I glanced at my dad and saw him playing with Nigel. Hand quivering, lips trembling, I hopped onto the nearest rock.

     “This is a lot more fun than I thought it would be!”  

     “I told you!” said Nathan. I jumped from rock to rock, all the way to the boys. 

     “Let’s go farther down,” said Ethan. As we headed down the creek, Ethan noticed that there were no more stones.

     “Stop here for a second,” Ethan told us. 

     “Why? What happened?” I looked past him to see no more stones to jump on. “Oh. I guess we have to go back,” I replied disappointedly.

     As I turned back I heard a rustling sound. I twisted my head and saw Ethan standing on the steep cliff side. There were a bunch of leaves scattered across the ground and a small tree with no leaves too.

     He continued to go farther ahead, and everyone else followed him. Everyone but me.

     “Are you sure I won’t fall?” He turned around and came back to help me.

     “Just jump. You’re not going to fall in,” he assured me. He reached out his hand to help. I gripped his hand tightly and jumped.

     Suddenly he let go of my hand. SPLASH. I fell face first into the water. I turned around and sat down. “Ouch. That hurt,” I winced. My whole body was soaking wet. “What are you staring at? Help me up!” I grunted. 

     “Are you okay?” Liam asked.

     “Yeah I’m fine. But I have to change now.” I looked down at my soggy and sticky clothes and sighed.

     I made my way back to my dad, past the bush, all while my body was numb from the cold wind. I went back inside the house to see my mom and aunt still talking there.

     “Are you ok?!” my aunt asked worriedly.

     “Yup! I’m nice and warm. Not soaking wet,”

     “Sophia.” My mother glared at me.

     “What? I really am dry!” She rolled her eyes at me and told me to go change.

     “Okay, okay,” I said, giving in to her intimidating personality.

     After I finished changing, I made my way downstairs. “I’m going back outside.” I put on my waterlogged shoes and went back to the creek.

     “You’re back? I thought you were going to stay inside?” said Nathan as soon as he saw me. 

     “I think I prefer staying outside.” Everyone's faces lit up.

     We played outside for almost an hour more. Time flies when you’re having fun!

     I felt a sense of accomplishment for trying something new. I usually don’t enjoy trying new things in a different environment, but I took a chance and had a good time. I learned two things from this experience. First, stepping out of your comfort zone sometimes is a good thing. Second, being open-minded to new experiences can lead to fun memories and new hobbies. Always challenge yourself; you never know what you can do until you try.

-Sophia C.