I was taking an evening walk along the beach this weekend.

The light going soft over the pearly blue of Vineyard sound and I could hear… Girls just wan na have fun!… playing up ahead. I walked up to a group of women who were laughing and enjoying a summer night.

They were all strangers and had just met over the last few minutes.

They invited me to join in their impromptu summer evening fun.We sat around the grill toasted marshmallows, told jokes and stories with the lap of the water as our back ground music.

The two women who had brought the grill told us they had met that morning over coffee on a bench overlooking the harbor. They wanted to stretch their comfort zones on their weekend trip and to connect with women who wanted to do the same. They had the idea to bring some supplies down to the beach with the intention of connecting and having fun and see what would happen.

Over the course of three hours on the beach we had become a group of eight women enjoying a wonderful summer evening. We had started out as “strangers” and had opened up… we had come together over marshmallows and the simple idea to have fun and connect.

We agreed that stopping and staying with the group had been a stretch for each one of us, a step beyond what was our normal habit. As we packed up and hugged each other good night it was inspiring to see we had all stretched into a wonderful new shape. The connection we had made on the beach had already begun to open us up to new possibilities.

What connections are you inspired to make this summer?

What wonderful ways can you stretch your comfort zone and shift to a new shape?