Some people move through their lives and become set in their ways. They enjoy only one way of eating a bagel, take the same road to the office every day and have clearly mastered a pattern of thinking that they do not sway from. They find comfort and security in ‘certainty’ and find discomfort and un-ease in change. For these people life becomes a hard and fast game of stringent guidelines, sameness and resistance. To venture from what they know to be right and true creates for them a precarious road on which to travel their life journey. The word change brings with it the promise of pain and unwelcome premonitions of the disintegration of life as they know it.
For many people, the possibility of any existence other than what they can wrap their heads (and their schedules) around can even make them physically ill. There is nothing more comfortable and appealing to them than existing in a cocoon of sameness and never venturing forth. What they do not realize is that their firm hold to routine and security brings with it an inherent resistance to the possibility of an even more satisfying and invigorating life. Resistance in and of itself is meaningless, but resistance to the natural ebb and flow of life is damaging not only to the physical body, it is also to the mind and spirit.
The real beauty of life is that it is ever-changing and unfolding even as you move through what you believe to be a firm and steady existence. The simple act of breathing in and out brings with it the inference that in order to be alive, the air in our bodies must move and flow and change… and this is just the air. The reality of life itself is that there is constant change in and around us. When someone tries to hold onto their thoughts and beliefs from twenty years ago as their outer world is moving on creates a resistance that, over time, becomes a virtual damn between the people in their lives and them self. This damn can be a protective wall to keep the waters of life at bay, and it can also be the wall that allows their life to dry up.
What a refreshing concept it is to become at ease with change. What a delicious and delightful concept it is to ‘go with the flow’. What a fanciful and fun concept to be able to be free from the chains that bind you.
If you are among the individuals who know there is something beautiful to be had in allowing change to happen in and around you, but you are firmly entrenched in your day-to-day routine because of the fear that change can bring, I invite you to open your mind to the possibilities. Ask of yourself “Who would I be if I allowed my mind to think a different thought? How would I feel if I opened my heart to a new path? What would I do if I could be one with the natural movement that is here for me?” The simple act of pondering these questions will automatically put the ball in motion and will begin opening you to change.
Will it bring up more fear and uncertainty? Quite possibly, but it will also start creating new synapses in your brain. Then, little by little, you may start to become excited by your new found thoughts. You may even feel invigorated and you’ll feel lighter as you step forth into the unknown. And as the days go by, people will look at you and wonder what you are so happy and excited about and how, after all these years, you now choose to put peanut butter on your bagel instead of cream cheese.
There’s more than one way. Now, that’s Powerful.
Sue – thank you for this article!!! It’s just what I needed! I’ve been feeling so “stuck” lately, mentally, physically, spiritually! There’s a reason your article appeared in my mailbox today. You’re so right – there is more than one way! Be well,
Regards,
Missy
Missy, I often write about those things that are on my mind. I have found a need for me to be more flexible and get ‘unstuck’ in some parts of my own life lately too. So happy this message is timely for you – Now, go for it! xo, Sue