Art of Life/Donna Parker
Change Happens
“Sometimes you make changes and sometimes changes make you.” - Donna Parker
Last fall, I had a medical event that quickly required me to do things differently and most importantly to think differently. Change is a constant feature in life as nothing ever stays the same. Endings follow beginnings and beginnings follow endings, and while we can struggle with all of the challenges and emotions this invokes, we each try to accept the inevitability of change as best as we can.
In many ways life is similar to the ebb and flow of the tides, lapping the shoreline and carving out possibility and potential. Yet, where the tides take millennia to carve out new shapes and pathways, change certainly feels to be happening somewhat more rapidly. If we pause for a moment to look back over the journey of our lives, we begin to realize that where we are now is a result of millions of individual thoughts and decisions, each one often insignificant in itself, but collectively becoming transformative on every level.
“There is nothing permanent, except change.” – Heroclitius
In many ways, the more we find peace with the ebb and flow of the storms of life, the more we can acknowledge the role we each play in our own evolution as it is our response to change that ultimately shapes and defines the paths we walk. Of course, none of us can control the shape or definition of our lives as we cannot control the currents, but we can choose how to respond as this perspective flavors all of our life experiences.
It feels quite liberating to acknowledge the notion that it is only when we let go and stop trying to control the uncontrollable that we can start to feel a deeper sense of peace. This is not a new concept, it is just one we all so often forget when life gets busy. This is not the same as giving up; it is about a willingness to trust the currents more and to be ready to ride with them wholeheartedly. It also acknowledges the fact that every single one of the choices we make, or choose not to make, has consequences. Nothing exists in isolation, so every choice, movement or decision impacts something else. It’s not surprising given the interconnectedness of life, but it is only when we accept the enormity of this that we can realize the importance of making the most of each and every moment to live well and to see life as an opportunity to grow, flourish and thrive.
It is all too easy to find reasons ‘not to’ on all levels of life and frequently it is our innate caution that often holds us back from reaching towards our dreams. It can be hard to embrace the unknown when the familiar feels safe and comfortable, yet, the more we hold back, the more we slow the flow of possibility and potential. This is not to say we need to charge ahead without treasuring where we are and what we have, quite the opposite in fact. It is a time to honor where we are, where we have been, and where we are going. It is also time to trust in the flow a little more and to feel the magic of the currents carrying us forwards towards new terrain.
“When things change inside of you, things change around you.” - Unknown
Instead of resisting change and all that which is being churned up, within and without, go deeply into your own soul, and ask yourself:
“How is this serving me?”
‘What am I still clinging onto, and what or whom am I still attached to?”
“Where have I not forgiven?”
“Where am I still judging and in duality?”
The deeper we go, the more we release and the freer and lighter we become.
