"May peace be your constant in the wild of changing things."

As sure as we grow older each day, we will continue to experience change. Even when we are content with where we are, we will not be able to stay here.

This garden is going to grow.
We are going to have to make room to plant new things.
We are going to have to prune old bushes and dig up old weeds and accept that things will look differently.
We will look into the faces of the ones we love and we will see that the years have changed them.
We will drive down streets we used to frequent everyday and not recognize all of the new buildings.
We will look at an old photograph of ourselves and not even know that person, and wonder what she was thinking about back then.
No matter how we feel about the present moment, it will not always be here. One day, it will be behind us, and we will have to accept what was, and carry on.

So take heart. In the wild of changing things, may peace be your constant. May you realize that perhaps what makes this season important and valuable is that it will never be here again. Things are going to change. And that means a lot of things. It might mean heartbreak, loss, grief, but it will also mean hope, grace, healing.

Change can be so hard to accept. And you might feel that change only seems to come right when you are getting settled in. You might feel like the second you gain one thing, you lose another. You might find that the moment you find peace, a storm rolls in over the hills. But it is the tension of all these things that you are still free to open your heart and see these garden for what it is, and accept the beauty of where it is in its current state...knowing that things will change, but you will be okay. Because peace was your constant.

You continued
to find the strength
to breathe deep,
and trust
that beyond
what you could see,
you could still
make the most of this life
in the wild of changing things.

Within the change, there is wholeness. There is an ability to see that there are so many things coming together, even if you do not understand it all. You will see shadows, but you will also see Light. You will have to discard old plants, and will sow new seeds. You will experience loss, and you will also experience Love. You will see the world change before your eyes, and you will see that you are changing, too, and through it all., you are still growing exactly in the way you were meant to.

More tomorrow…

Sincerely,

Morgan Harper Nichols