I am not a social butterfly. I always wanted to be like one of those girls that floats around parties and crowds, giving two-cheeked kisses, tossing her shiny blond hair and waving her dainty, manicured hands at all her adoring fans. You know, the kind who giggles into her ever-ringing phone and gets invited to all the coolest parties.

Nope, not me. I've been known to duck behind pyramids of canned veggies at the grocery store at the sight of an aquaintance. Too shy to know what to say, and terrified that they might think I have nothing better to do than hang out at the Superstore on a Saturday night. It's a whole lot easier to give in to my social awkwardness than to step outside my comfort zone and strike up a conversation.

Today, though, something happened. It's been a long time coming, really. The girl in paragraph 2 actually existed only a few years ago. Slowly, she's been morphing into something far different from the chubby little caterpillar she once was. Today, I called up a girl and asked her to go shopping with me. Just like that. I never do that, but today I did. And we went, we had a great time, and she even helped me find a very flattering outfit.

I'll probably never be the flitting butterfly from paragraph 1 (gosh, I hope not!), but I am trying out my wings a wee bit. Turns out it's kind of nice out here beyond my comfort zone.