Transitions
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Transitions
Transitions
This is the time of year when the invitations and announcements for transitional events pour into the mailbox and into the social media. High school and college graduation announcements, wedding invitations, and party invitations for celebrating these transitions have been arriving for over a month now. Each one of these transitions involve joy and a little bracing of oneself for what comes next. The more I thought about this, the more I realized that life is a series of transitions and nearly all of them have this two-edged sword effect.
For at least three weeks I have been weeding cool weather clothes out of my closet, pulling out storage containers of warmweather clothes, and making the seasonal wardrobe switch. I am almost done with the Spring Washing of the Woolens—getting our beloved woolen clothing ready for their six months of being in storage. As much as I love the flowers, birds, and butterflies that come with spring, I dread the transition into summer. Out here in Spring Creek, we have missed most of the recent rain so we are still very, very dry. I especially dread summer when we have no pond water for the animals. Again, a combination of joy and bracing for what comes next.
I have been back at my Bible-in-a-year program, and one take-away I get every time is the consistency of human existence. As I was writing the above paragraphs, Ecclesiastes 3 came to mind, which begins “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” What follows that verse are pairs of opposites, like “a time to weep and a time to laugh” and “a time to mourn and a time to dance.” A time to be joyful and celebrate, and a time to get serious and tackle the real life that follows.
Another quote that comes to mind is from Heraclitus, “Change is the only constant in life.” That constant change is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, sometimes I get everything settled and am enjoying a nice, peaceful life, wishing that nothing would change, but knowing for certain that it will. At other times, things are not peaceful or happy so I am hoping for and waiting for the change I know is coming…eventually.
My Aunt Lola used to remind me, “This, too, shall pass.” That simple phrase has kept me hanging on through some very tough times. As I have gotten older, I have become acutely aware that the good things in life also pass. I have tried to make a conscious effort to appreciate and hold onto the good when it comes along, no matter how small it may be. It gets really confusing when tough times and good times are all tangled up together, like when you are in school or when you are raising your children. Sometimes when it all looks tough, it can be a challenge to find the positive or favorable aspects of the transition, but they are there, I promise. For example, I dread summer, especially a droughty summer, but dry weather means no mosquitoes and no need to run the lawnmower more than a couple or three times. That may be a paper-thin favorable aspect, but it IS favorable.
Now I am off to finish up my wardrobe transition. I wish all of you big, fat favorables and thin little unfavorables in all your transitions.