There is nothing permanent except change.
Heraclitus
Whether we like to admit it or not, at some level, we have all been resistant to change. That is not just stubbornness, it is biology. When you do an internet search on the word change, you will get a zillion hits. I found this little definition on Adam Dachis blog called lifehacker:
For our purposes, let’s define change as “a modification to a person’s environment, situation, or physical/mental condition that results in circumstances that challenge their existing paradigms.” What our definition implies is that humans have a tendency to define how their world is supposed to work. Whenever something happens in our personal world or to our own being that is inconsistent with the way we feel the world should be, we encounter change.
We change clothes, we change hair color, we change our email address. People are born and die. We move, we get different jobs, we outlive pets. We can want change, avoid change, deny change. We ask others to change, or tell they don’t have to, such as is written about by Shel Silverstein, author of The Giving Tree:
If you’re sloppy, that’s just fine.
If you’re moody, I won’t mind.
If you’re fat, that’s fine with me.
If you’re skinny, let it be.
If you’re bossy, that’s alright.
If you’re nasty, I won’t fight.
If you’re rough, well that’s just you.
If you’re mean, that’s alright too.
Whatever you are is all okay.
I don’t like you anyway.
While some of us have said we don’t like change, others change with less stress. However, it is known that even those of us who appreciate variety in life, experience stress with regard to changing life circumstances. Stress related to change is so well recognized as a health threat, Web MD has an interactive tool so you can test your level of change-related stress.
Since the only constant is change, it is best to get some ease about it. Here is a simple exercise you can do so you are able to experience less central nervous system stress around change:
- take a small amount of water into your mouth
- feel the impulse to swallow
- just observe the impulse until it passes (usually about 17 seconds)
- gently swallow
A variation on the swallowing exercise is to feel when your body is asking for a change (standing up after sitting a while, or sitting down after standing for a time), and notice the impulse for the posture change, and for a few seconds just watch the impulse like waves in an ocean. Kindly make the change when the impulse is low rather than high. By using your body to educate your mind about healthy relationship to change, you will be more open and less resistant.
Watch clouds in the sky. Notice how they form, change shape, and dissipate with great ease. The average lifespan of a butterfly is about one month. There is a beauty within the impermanence of life that can be both comforting and familiar.
This week, practicing or thinking about these exercises with an intention of your experiencing change more as an ebb and flow of experience will allow you to notice and release any contraction (resistance) to the natural process of change you might have had.
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Rev. Debra Basham
Voice: (269) 921-2217 Email: debra@scs-matters.com https://scs-matters.com http://ImagineHealing.info http://SurgicalSupport.info Small Changes … Infinite Results™
“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” ~Mother Teresa Tips from 5 April 2010 to 6 August 2012 are here: Archived Tips |