Change gets a really bad rap. Often, change is seen as an unwanted experience that comes out of nowhere and changes the life you had and loved. Unexpectedly, life is upside down and the change is to blame. Change becomes the enemy and people do all they can to prevent it by saying things like:
“Nothing ever stays the same”
“I like how things are, I don’t want things to change”
“Why does this have to change?”
Or
“You’ve changed, you’re not the same anymore”
The thing is, everything and everyone changes. Change is not the enemy. It’s not something to resist, fear, or push back against. Change is your friend.
People who resist change are generally burying their head in the sand about bigger issues. What feels like change could simply be their unwillingness or inability to adapt to a world that is ever-changing.
It would be wonderful if we could freeze time and live for eternity during some of our favorite phases of life. Some things simply make you want to stay there forever:
- Gazing at your toddler’s sleeping face
- Watching sunsets on the best vacation you’ve ever had
- Being in the honeymoon phase of your marriage
- Experiencing the prime years in your career
Of course, happy times make you want to put time in a bottle and keep it from escaping but that’s not going to happen. The key to making change your friend is seeing the potential for more happiness, more opportunity, more to explore, and more to gain each time things change.
Even the hardest change has opportunity and positivity. It might not seem like it at the moment, but there is always something there that can be better when it’s all said and done. Treating change like an enemy sets you up for feeling like a victim and invites depression and a sense of hopelessness. It can also cause you to get stuck in a moment in time and make it very hard to recover. Treating change like a normal part of life makes it easier to adapt and move through even the hardest setbacks.
Embracing change and looking for what positive things can happen or what the potential is for something new and exciting shifts your mind from doom to delight. The choice is yours to make. Not only that, you have the ability to help influence and encourage those around you to see change as something everyone experiences and has the choice to embrace or resist. How you model and work with change will directly impact how your family does the same.
