Learning Through Change

Happy New Year and welcome to 2019! I know for some it’s passé to spend time reThecting on the year that was, at the start of another, but I’d like to occupy some space in this Field Notes space for that purpose.

Not every year can be summed up with a single word or phrase, but this year I believe the word “change” addresses many things that occurred in 2018. Change can be good, can be bad, can be sought out, and can be surprising. But, as Greek philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus is credited with speaking about, the one thing change is without fail is constant.

On a personal level this year for me has included some significant moments of change, mostly centered on losing people who were dear to me. We all face this reality, and I was reminded many times during these moments of change of something my sweet little Irish grandmother once said to me when I was a child. She shared this bit of wisdom as she wiped the tears from my face, on the heels of attending my first funeral. She said loving someone and cherishing that person oThen brings a lot of happy, and inevitably it will bring sadness. But, it’s all worth it. Grandma was right, and in her typical fashion when I asked what the word “inevitably” meant, she simply pointed to the dictionary on the shelf.