Almost a week ago, I wrote about seeing a production of Guys and Dolls, and through a strange combination of curiosity and logistics, tonight I was in the audience again. And while this was my second time seeing this production, and my seventh or eighth seeing the show, there were still things that were new to me, still new joy, new laughter, new appreciation.
As I pondered all the things I appreciated even more the second time than the first, I wondered if they were things that had been there before or not. And I thought about how often we look for new experiences, feeling as though we have no need to repeat what we've already done. We, of course, spend our money to see a show we haven't seen rather than to see again one we have loved. We try to expose our kids to different things rather than repeat trips to the places they already know. We are constantly on the lookout for the new and the different.
While there is nothing wrong with new experiences, we miss the boat a little when we assume that new experience has to be with something we've never before encountered. Just as I saw different things in Guys and Dolls than I saw a week ago, we all have the opportunity to experience things differently, even when on the surface, the things are the same.
I could easily have said "been there, done that" to the question of seeing Guys and Dolls again, but I'm so glad I didn't. Because sometimes, "been there" doesn't even come close to "done that." So it's worth doing again.
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