Change

As I alluded to in my last post, I have been experiencing some major transitions in my life as of the last few months. The biggest change of course has been moving cross-country, across three time zones, away from the life I have known for the last 11+ years in Columbus, Ohio. So, of course there has been a little bit of "culture shock" going on for me.

One of the challenges--and benefits--of change, I have found, is that it forces you to learn to look at things differently. The situation from which you normally view things has shifted and you gain a new perspective. This is a great opportunity for growth, as well as a time of possible frustrations.

Consider, for example, the case of my missing hat. A couple of weeks ago I was getting ready to head out with either my sister or my parents (or both!), and I wanted to wear my black nike hat. I had worn it recently, so I knew it wasn't still packed away somewhere. Also, the places in which it could be was somewhat limited, as most of my belongings are either in my room or in the back utility room. I spent at least 20 minutes looking over and over again in the same places, as if someone was playing a trick on me and the hat would suddenly appear where I had previously looked. In reality, I had exhausted the number of places that I could think of looking, so repeating my steps was the only way I knew how to progress in my search, as ineffective an approach as it was.

Finally, at the last minute before it was time to leave, I found my black nike hat hanging on the bedpost at the foot of the bed. "There!" I exclaimed with much relief. Why could I not find my hat that had been resting in plain sight this entire time? The answer was simple: I have not had bedposts in 15 years or more! Why would I even think of looking there?!

Change encourages us to learn to look at things from a new perspective. I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes:

"We don't see things as they are. We see things as we are." --Anais Nin

Change impacts who we are and therefore has an impact on how we see things. Thank heavens, or I might never have found my hat!