Some Things Never Change... but People Do.

It is funny how some things never change, but people do change. Let me elaborate.

As you know (since I have been inundating Facebook with my status updates about the subject!), I have been able to spend a lot of time this week in Cumming visiting my sister (who lives in California but is visiting for two weeks) and extended family. Today I drove to my grandparents’ house to spend the day at the lake with some of my extended family members, which made me nostalgic.

I mulled over the idea of change and was flooded with memories as my car glided easily over the familiar curves in the roads that lead to their home. My grandparents have lived in the same house for my entire life, and I lived in their neighborhood for part of my childhood. I have ridden and driven on those same roads countless times but at totally different stages in my life – riding next to my sister in my mom’s minivan when we were little, riding in John’s truck as he drove me home from dates, and driving my Beetle when I learned to take the wheel myself.

The theme of people, not things, changing floated through my mind for the remainder of the day. I realized that the Barbies at Nana and Grandaddy’s house are the same ones that have always been there, but it was my cousin’s preschool-age daughter Lily who was playing with them today, not me. The walkway to the lake is still technically the same, though it seemed long, steep and intimidating to me as a child. It now seems shorter and milder to me, but my aging grandfather now has the opposite perception and prefers to ride a golf cart down it instead of walk. The walkway hasn’t changed, but the people and their abilities have.

Similarly, I’ve spent the night at my parents’ house a couple of times this week, and I’ve stayed in the guest room, which was a change! It’s the same house, but since my marital status has changed, I stayed in a different room. Sleeping in the guest room sounded weird at first, but it feels right (plus, my parents are using “my room” for something else now – as they should!). The house still belongs to the Jackson’s, but I personally have added a name after Jackson and therefore no longer consider the house my primary residence.

People changing, the passing of time, and life transitions are inevitable, unstoppable and not always a bad thing! This is a relatively new and very refreshing thought for this former routine-addict. Change can be refreshing, promising and challenging all at the same time. The important thing is to see the potential in change and keep your eyes forward. God continues to teach me so much about change and adaptability, and I am so grateful for his grace in that. When I reflect as I did today, I realize that I have been changing since day one, and he has helped me with each I transition and transformation I’ve encountered. Change is not to be feared. I’m going to replace change with stubbornness and an unwilling heart as things to avoid!