After our grown sons moved away from California to take up residence in other states, my husband and I pondered the possibility of leaving our spacious house for a smaller place and eventually came to the conclusion that this was the right thing to do. In reaching this decision, I witnessed in myself two very different, simultaneous reactions.
The first was: How can I leave our beautiful home? Won’t I miss it? ~ a tenuous response I symbolically termed re-reading the same chapter. Re-reading the same chapter is essentially maintaining the status quo where much is predictable and expected. A familiar way of life ~ which for us included a great deal of joyful entertaining ~ continues.
The second was: Contracting seems to make sense at this point in our lives … we’ll have more freedom ~ a response I identified as turning the page and beginning a new chapter. Beginning a new chapter is stepping into fresh territory where much can be random and unforeseen. This choice would give us liberty to travel and open the opportunity to pursue our work with greater attention.
Certainly, with any change there is both fear of the unknown and enthusiasm for the yet-to-be-known. This enthusiasm can be heightened by a hopeful trust in the goodness of life and an inexplicable energy that wells when we step outside our comfort zones to explore new ground.
By gracefully accepting change as inevitable, we loosen the grip of control we think we have over our lives and allow ourselves greater flexibility.
Regardless of our resistance to it, change is an ever-present aspect of reality. Circumstances validate this truth over and over, even when we struggle to deny them.
While nostalgia may, on occasion, have a useful purpose as a means of self-reflection, as a steady diet reliving the past is unhealthy. True, our personal history is naturally integrated into the individual we are today, however, our aliveness, our joie de vivre can only be experienced in the present moment.
Thus, how we perceive change will determine whether we re-read the same chapter repeatedly or willingly turn the page and start a new one.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like: 5 Ways To Benefit From Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone.
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Change seems endemic to life–Some changes we chose, and some are forced upon us unwillingly. I am hopeful that there is some kind of learning or coming toward deeper understanding with each change.
The new path may or may not be easy, pleasant, or joyful. In my own life, recent changes have manifested in tremendous physical suffering due to a chronic and incurable condition. But, I do still wish to trust in the innate goodness of others, my fellow human beings, even in these difficult and uncertain times. I also realize that, even in a compromised state, it is important to be giving toward others, for they too suffer, hope, and dream in a precarious world.
A gift to another may be a material thing; but, more often, a gift takes shape in a smile, a kind word, or sharing a thought with a friend or stranger.
I wish you an exciting journey at this turning point of your lives. Who knows what will emerge as you turn the page?
Our true friends are always with us–in spirit–in heart–whether they are physically present or far away.
Change has been my pursuit. So, my dear, you fulfill it by being capable of being new and evermore perfect each day, as this blog of yours proves.