The Ever Changing Current

My sons at the edge of the Smith River in the Redwoods

The one constant in my life has been change, and change has often represented loss. As I have grown older and wiser I appreciate how these things have shaped me and created character. I love people; their differences, similarities, weaknesses, and strengths. I sometimes identify heavily with someone experiencing a particularly painful loss or change and something in me wants hold them and let them know, while this doesn't feel good right now, It will soon be better than before! Change teaches us lessons that will help us learn and grow. That is, if we are living with our eyes open.

Losing the Love Family Ranch for instance, seemed at first a minor blow…before realizing what it would do to our hearts and traditions. It was our place to gather, where we went when we were lonely, or to celebrate, this place held our roots, quite literally holding the Family together. It didn't take long to see the damage that was done by losing this place. People, traditions, and even beliefs all changed. It was a very clear example of the power of change.

I have lost many things, innocence, friends, family, and even places…some things are harder to take than others, but we carry on don't we? I have learned the hard way, made mistakes I knew I was making but somehow felt compelled to continue, but I learned and I grew, and I didn’t look back and think “what if”…”what if” isn’t going to get you anywhere, it’s “Doing” that takes you places.

I still have my family and friends but we are changed, and I’m not going to mourn what once was, but instead take the opportunity to build my friendships and family anew. It’s a great chance to throw out all the rubbish and start fresh.

I love this process, and in a way thank my hippie upbringing for making it a more natural process for me. Nothing was constant, where we lived, who we lived with, nothing. I don't think it was necessarily a bad thing. I like to know to some extent what happens next, but I'm also confident that change will come, I can deal with it, even embrace it at times.

I believe people, places, and experiences, flow through us like rivers, changing us just a little, just as rivers slowly carve through their landscapes forming them anew. We cannot hang on to any of it, or we would turn stagnant and dull and eventually dry up.

That’s what it means to “Go with Flow” it can't be stopped so we may as well try to enjoy the ride, weather the white waters, and enjoy it when the water is calm. One thing you can count on for sure is change will come, the choice is ours to let it tear us down or build us up…I know what I choose.