Change is Always Certain

Change—always change. Change is a constant in our lives. We are not always aware that change is taking place, but at some point we realize that we have changed in many ways, as have our circumstances.

Sometimes we long for the ‘good ole days’ before the world changed so much. However this is a trade off: whether we want to go back to the days when women had to heat water on a wood stove to do the wash, or if we would rather have an automatic washer and dryer to take care of our laundry.

Would we want to go back to the days before cell phones? Even though they are sometimes nuisances, cell phones are invaluable in times of crisis when help is needed. As I have seen the value of having a cell phone, I’ve changed my mind about their usefulness.

One of the most evident changes is our fast-paced life. We seem to have no time for the slower schedules and quiet enjoyments of life now. We leave one meeting early in order to get to another meeting late.

There was a time when my life was scheduled up to the minute. I planned the order of all the things I would do and when I would do them. Eventually, it dawned on me that I was really missing out on a lot of pleasurable activities and that I was being a slave to my schedule.

Many times Ray would come into the kitchen where I might be washing dishes and tell me he was going to the country for some reason or other. He would ask me if I would like to go along. Most of the time I told him I had better stay home and finish my chores.

But as time passed, my senses told me that the dishes and other chores would wait, and I had the opportunity to go enjoy some time with him. Since then, my routine has become much more flexible and if I want to leave something undone here at home, I do, and try to make the most of the opportunities that are available to me.

We often give the impression that we are driven by a compulsion to get everything done today.

My mother’s nature was that she only had so much time to do everything on her list and that meant she often times seemed to be going to a fire. Mother wanted us to feel that everything was perfect for us, but the outcome of that desire was that she was usually tired and worn out.

On the other hand, Ray’s mother never seemed to get in a hurry and when we went to her house, she always took time to sit down and visit. She made us feel welcome.

As I think of all the changes of the past 50 years, I wonder what it will be in another half century. What conditions will my great-grandchildren confront? Will they take time to stop and enjoy the beauty all around them, or will they speed by so fast, they never notice God’s beauty? We had better smell those roses today, they won’t last forever.

8-20-2009
#448