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As the saying goes, change is inevitable except from a vending machine. Our lives today are not the same as they were yesterday and will be different again tomorrow. Even in small and almost barely perceptible ways our lives are always in a state of constant change and evolution. And then sometimes the changes are so sudden, massive, and sweeping the image of ‘before’ can wind up seeming a lifetime or more away.
When struck with such jarring and dramatic change we essentially have two main choices. Either try and swim our way back to familiar shores or ride with it and prepare to explore new horizons. Both approaches have their pros and cons and both can be taken to perspective blinding extremes.
We can try to hide from the inherent fears change evokes by burying our heads in the sand and wrapping ourselves in the reassurances of ‘this is how we have always done it’. Or we can try to hide from the fear by doubling down on the addictive rush of novelty under the justifying credo ‘new is always better’. One approach denies change through stubborn refusal the other tries to outrun it by constantly chasing ‘next’, and at their core both are attempts to avoid the potential fears and pains involved in embracing genuine change.