Change

When I was a young girl, change was one thing I feared and avoided; in truth, I think I may have despised it. The status quo, the familiar, the known--these were my safe havens, even though my life was not often one of ease and privilege, nor was it a particularly peaceful one. Still, the security of sameness seemed preferable to taking a risk on a worse fate. And so it was that, for most of my life, I hid like a scared rabbit in the burrow of the known, even of the known evil. It seemed the safer and more sensible course--and the less scary one.

Over time, though, and after many experiences, I have come to see the value of change; and I have learned to accept it, sometimes even to welcome it, as that part of living which most reflects life. And I have realized how wrong I was to fear it; for it is essential. Life is change, and change is life; it is what keeps us growing and learning. It is the young bird pushed out of the nest by its mother so that it may learn to fly, and so, to live. It is the fire which ravages the forest so that it may grew anew, stronger and more beautiful than before. It is the storm which brings an even more profound calm in its wake. It is the death of the old self to make way for the new. It is the anguish of Good Friday which leads to the joy of Easter Sunday.

So, now I know the truth; I have finally learned it. And it is this: God is in control. There is no reason to be afraid, let the changes come as they will. My one constant is God, and He can never change; He is my refuge, always the same. And I must do just one thing well: I must allow Him to lead me through this life so that I may be changed for the good. It is all so simple, and I have His word on it, : "Behold, I make all things new!" I'm not afraid any more.

Stronger

"There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast."

--Charles Dickens in The Pickwick Papers

Habit

"Its matter was not new to me, but was presented in a new aspect. It shook me in my habit--the habit of nine-tenths of the world--of believing that all was right about me, because I was used to it..."

--Charles Dickens in Dombey and Son

The image

"Live in such a way that all may know that you bear outwardly as well as inwardly the image of Christ crucified, the model of all gentleness and mercy."

--Saint Paul of the Cross

Temporary

"Pain is never permanent."

--Saint Teresa of Avila