You know the old joke, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”
For me, when things change abruptly, I feel sort of shell shocked, disoriented and frankly, pissed off. One of my big dreams is that I will become more graceful in life as I grow older and wiser, but that hasn’t happened yet. I still lose my peace of mind. And it takes me a while to regain it.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not anti-change. In fact, I like changes… as long as they’re changes I’ve planned and implemented on my own terms. But life, as we all discover at some point, doesn’t always go according to plan.
When life takes an unexpected turn, big or small, there are certain things I do that help me adjust:
1st. I accept my feelings. So, I’m not as graceful as I’d like to be. I still get very hurt, very disappointed, feel sorry for myself, and discouraged. I can even go so far as to say, “To hell with it.” These are normal reactions to things gone awry. To deny this on the grounds of being a higher spiritual being isn’t true for me yet. I’m very human. And being human, I’ve come to accept my feelings, no matter how messy, uncomfortable, unpleasant and painful they may be. But here’s the growth: I’ve also come to know that feelings will pass… once I let them. Then I can recenter or reground myself and come back to a more realistic and eventually positive perspective.
2nd. I get on with it. The trick is to not make the pain any worse or to stay in the dark place too long. I give myself a day at the most to whine, kick or scream. The next day, I pick myself up and get on with it. I accept the change that the universe has offered up because I have no choice. Okay, so now what? Now is the time to process what this shift means in the overall picture of my life.
3rd. I count my blessings. Sure, sometimes, plans fail and the universe serves up a steaming plate of Unexpected and Unwanted Change for dinner. The truth is that I haven’t achieved my goals. (I’m still working on them.) At this stage in my life, I’m not where I want to be. But I have a lot to be grateful for. Those of you who have read my previous blog entries know that I always begin and end my days the same way. I wake up every morning and vow to make the best of the day ahead. And before I go to bed at night, I remind myself to be grateful for the things I have. These are things such as the roof overhead, the clothes on my back, and the food in my belly. I also have my eyesight, my hearing, and my sense of taste, touch, and smell intact. My body is in one piece and my legs can take me wherever I need to go. Countless people aren’t so fortunate. I don’t take any of these blessings for granted.
Life is full of twists and turns. Nothing stays the same forever. Change is inevitable. Take this blog for example… I started this blog with the intention of chronicling the progress of my novel, from the first page to the last chapter. And now look at it! This blog of mine has turned into a peculiar combination of a diary, a place where I share tips and tricks I’ve learned about surviving the 21st century (if you’re an old-fashioned soul like me) and ideas on how to make the most of what you’ve got.
That’s all from me for now. Have a fantastic week ahead!
– Altea
