The Unopened Gift

I’ve been thinking lately about change. There are two types of change: the kind you initiate and the kind you don’t. Some people will never initiate any kind of change in their own life. They are still eating the same cereal they have eaten since they were 4. They perpetually drive the same way to and from work. To these people, change is never welcome in any way, shape, or form. They are continually disappointed. Then, there are the people who will initiate change on their own terms but who bristle and pucker up when change happens against their will. I think most people fall into this middle category. We are slightly better off than the first group, but still feel overwhelmed when life takes us down a path we did not choose. Finally, there are those rare individuals who embrace change even when it’s not, at least at first glance, positive. I’ve always admired this third group because they seem to be the most evolved. In a world where everything changes, only the most enlightened people accept that every change comes for a reason, although we may have no clue what it is.

I am not the world’s most gracious person when faced with a change I did not ask for. My initial and gut response to almost any change is negative. The amount of time it takes me to accept the change and move forward, however, is continually growing shorter. I’m learning to let go and to accept that I do not have all the answers. I’m beginning to look for the silver lining in every cloud because sometimes life presents what we need even though we don’t yet understand that we need it. Sometimes, the unexpected is a gift we simply haven’t unwrapped yet.