Change: how to live with it and learn from it

Change, that inevitable fact of life... seeks us out, moment to moment.... causing stress (adaptation to change = stress); or creating opportunities. Change keeps us moving, ideally, towards health and healing. Like pain, we are nudged into perpetual motion, avoiding the difficulty, conflict, and stagnation, in the direction of new growth and strength. But it certainly doesn't feel that way. We often don't recognize the strengthening aspects of change until we are over the hump, through the tunnel, with some semblance of objectivity and enough distance to provide clarity. "What did that part of my life mean?" "How is my life better now because of those changes?"

Humans long for simplicity, structure and stability. Too much change too fast rocks our world and leaves us shaken at times. Here is a great article from Yoga Journal about change, and the skills and strategies that can teach us flexibility, gratitude, and the ability to make meaning out of the ups and downs that accompany each and every day. -JD

Change is in the Air

by Chris Colin
Excerpts:
So, how is it that when life is spun around by circumstances, benign or otherwise, some people flail, while others sail? Why do some of us wallow in that place where we're so shocked and unhappy about an unexpected turn of events that we resist reality and find ourselves mired in bitterness or fear or hopelessness? Instead of accepting change with grace, we dig in our heels and suffer through each day of things not being what we think they should be. What's the secret to riding each new wave gracefully—regardless of whether it deposits you gently on the beach or wallops you down to the seafloor?

How can you learn to accept change with equanimity, absorbing each phase in stride and learning from each new experience? The answer may come from dealing with change in three distinct stages.

Loosen Your Grip, Separate Your Feelings, Tap Into Wisdom

Expect the Unexpected

Prepare for life's ups and downs with a daily practice. Frank Jude Boccio offers some ideas for a change-friendly inner life.

Accept Impermanence Every morning, I repeat a gatha (mindfulness verse): "Great is the matter of birth and death; impermanence surrounds us. Be awake each moment; do not waste your life." Much of my practice has to do with aligning myself with that. Then, ideally, my action comes from the situation, rather than from a false perception of what's happening.

Practice mindfulness Come back to the present moment. The Buddha points out that you can be happy in a pleasant situation, but then it's all too easy to lose yourself in the pleasure.

Take a breath When faced with a change, pleasant or otherwise, I try to tune in to my breath, and how I'm feeling in my body. Tuning into the breath gives me time to respond better to an unpleasant situation.

Be sure to click the link above to get the full article.