Last semester, I found myself obsessively searching through the college course catalog for classes to bump my credit hour load from 16 hours to the maximum 18 hours. Despite my desire for a two credit hour class, not many were offered and none of the few that were offered were appealing to me. Among the mass of unattractive courses was one that did catch my eye, Ballet I.

Let me start with establishing the fact that I am not a dancer. My ballet experience consists of jumping around to a song about bumblebees in a preschool dance recital at the local YMCA. Somehow, despite my lack of skill, I signed up for a ballet class in college after 16 years of not dancing. There were two possible outcomes to this decision; I would either figure out that I love dance and pick up a new hobby or be so far behind the experienced dancers that I would get frustrated every time our instructor said “pas de bourree.” Both outcomes quickly became a reality. I spent days looking in the mirror watching my legs move across the floor like an octopus trying to escape a fish tank while everyone else seemed to glide effortlessly, but I loved every moment of it.

Taking a ballet class was new to me, and through this experience I have learned that it is important to try new things. As I prepare to begin my sophomore year of college I can definitely say that I’m entering with more than I did freshman year. I’m not just talking about the physical items, but the lessons I learned with them. I’m not just bringing dance shoes and dumbbells, but a desire to strengthen and be more aware of my body; I’m not just bringing a sewing kit and canvases, but outlets for stress relief and creative ability; and I’m not just bringing poetry books, but stanzas of ways to see the beauty in the world and communicate better with my peers.

These activities have taught me many lessons, from identity through every unique skill I enjoyed, to humility through every mistake I made. I broke the walls I had put up after years of telling myself I was too weak to lift weights. I reignited the passion that had remained dormant for so long when I picked up a paint brush. I fulfilled a goal that I had suffocated in the back of my mind when I crocheted my first scarf. I learned that I am capable of accomplishing more than I let myself believe and that I can enjoy more than just the activities that I have grown accustomed to during the past 19 years. Through picking up new activities, learning became beautiful again- and that was something that could not have come from a textbook.

I encourage you to take up a new skill for the end of 2016; whether that’s taking an intensive literature course to become better at your reading abilities, sculpting pottery to perfect your room decor with custom vases, or learning proper technique to lift weights so you can impress your friends at the gym. It’s not always going to be easy-and it shouldn’t be-but in the end, you’ll find that you are capable of more than the box you have set yourself in; and in my experience, that is worth all the toe blisters, sore muscles, paint spills and mortifying mistakes you could possibly endure.