Change is a funny word. It can make people feel scared or excited. We resist it or we welcome it. I’m sure you have heard the quote, “The only constant is change.” But how do we adjust and shift to change? How do we embrace it, especially at times we just want to resist it? Change happens whether we want it to or not. It is up to us how we respond and cope with change when it is knocking on our doorstep.
The month of August usually marks a new season or transition in people’s lives. We are often making back-to-school preparations, taking last summer trips, and at the end of summer, and for many, the signs of a change in the weather season. Unless, of course, you live here in Florida.
Here in Florida, this time of year, we are amping up for hurricane season. In the Tampa Bay area, we are still recovering from the 2024 Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Our community has had a great deal of change.. We have grieved and continue to grieve all the loss: businesses that didn’t reopen, homes that had to be torn down, neighbors who moved away, and people who are still waiting to return to their rebuilt homes.
As we enter a new season, we know change will occur. We know that we are still picking up the pieces, and yet, we’ve also seen some good that has come out of this too. We can ask ourselves the question: How do we find stability in the midst of change? How do we embrace the change and trust that we have the strength to walk through it?
Finding stability in the midst of change is acknowledging what we have learned from the past, recognizing how we’ve grown, and focusing on what we can control. It is also important to identify our support network that will help pull us through and encourage us with whatever change is happening in our lives. That is the thing about change: it is often a dance of endings and beginnings that we are either open to or don’t want or ask for. Change isn’t necessarily bad. It can be scary and heartbreaking, but it can also be exciting and joyful. What matters most is acknowledging the ending and stepping into something new. It’s a reminder that we are strong and capable of making it through whatever lies ahead. Remembering that the more we resist change or try to control it, the harder it is to move through it and grow from it.
Change forces us to become something new. It can be a change we welcome or resist, and we can become someone different. Through change, we grow, we learn, and we find strength in knowing that we can welcome the change.
As we move toward the end of the summer and step into back-to-school and prepare for possible hurricanes, ask yourself:
How do I create stability for myself?
What have I learned from the past to help me now?
How can I stay present and focus on what is in my control?
And most importantly, believe in yourself. You can manage any unexpected change and embrace the changes in your life.
