Change

By Pamela Nowak

Change…it’s a quiet word, not really representative of all that’s associated with it. For each of us, it has a unique set of implications. Since I’m in a contemplative mood, I’ll spend today exploring them.

When I was younger, change represented the unknown, with all its uncertainty. It was something I usually avoided. It often brought implications I didn’t like. I was forced into new ways of doing things and reactions I didn’t expect. Most especially, there might be risk in change and I wasn’t a fan of risk. It took me out of my comfort zone and I rather liked my little box.

We’re often advised not to make major decisions during times of change or to not make changes during times of stress—I’ve heard both bits of wisdom cited. This implies change is to be avoided, that it may be sought without thought, or that it may come back to bite us. It suggests that change somehow controls us.

Yet there is the adage that change is good. When we’re “in a rut,” change may prompt good things…new ideas, fresh takes, etc. It is the reason we build in turn-over in governing by-laws and we bemoan the lack of it when talking about entrenched politicians.

So, is change good or is it bad? I suspect it can be either—sometimes at the same time and altering upon the unique circumstance. Certainly, new ideas are to be applauded but the loss of old wisdom may be mourned. It is up to us to look at it from each angle and to adjust to it, be it positively or negatively.

At this point of my life, I choose to look at change as opportunity. How I react to it, what I do with it, is up to me. I’ve come to see that boxes can hold me back, make it impossible to stretch myself, to try different things or to react in new ways.

When I moved to the Denver area after several significant life changes, my dear friend Liz Roadifer gifted me with a gorgeous angel figure releasing several butterflies from her extended hands. The card that came with her indicated she was Arabella, the Guardian of Change. This quote was on the card: “Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands, but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is.” (Maxim Gorky).

Arabella sits above my desk. She reminds me daily of the gifts that are in change and my role in releasing them. I can’t control what happens, but I can control how I react to it.

So, what does all this have to do with writing? It is a writing blog, right?

During our writing journey, from our first floundering attempts to becoming authors and building careers, we will encounter change after change. At first, we will be forced to decide if we will adapt our writing techniques as our craft develops. Will we reject painful critique or find the grains of truth in it? We will encounter reality that is different from our expectations with each rejection letter. We will see sales that may not be what we anticipated (be it low sales or a run-away best-seller). All of these are changes, all of them in addition to the changes we will meet in “regular life.” How we respond, what we find in each fork in the road, is up to each of us.

Life is not always kind, nor are our journeys smooth. The changes we are confronted with are not always those we would ask for, nor are they what we want. But they all hold opportunity…if we look hard enough. As you think on this year nearly gone and the new year approaching, I hope all of you are able to find the possibilities in the changes that have come your way.