Nothing stays the same (something else is also true…) January 15, 2014 – Posted in: Confidence, Personal Development – Tags: coaching, failure, Positive psychology, positive thinking
Recently, I met a woman with a story that’s remarkable both for its sorrow and its joy. She and I were chatting as we helped our little daughters change for their swimming lessons, and she mentioned that she’d previously had another daughter who’d died as an infant. If that wasn’t enough, her marriage then floundered leaving her both childless and single. I remarked that she must have been devastated when this had happened to which she responded, “Yes, I was and I thought I’d never pull through it. But I did and now I have *Molly and a new partner.”
What impressed me so much about this amazing woman was her ability to trust in life again. To have had her life ripped apart and to have survived without being embittered or crushed by fear is no mean feat, and it reminded me that in our deepest despair something else is always true, even if we can’t see it. When this incredible woman’s child and husband had gone she would’ve had no idea that future happiness would be hers, that a new life would grow in her belly, that a new partner would bring her love and support. These new people in her life don’t diminish what she went through or stop her missing what ‘was’ but they do demonstrate how life constantly evolves.
Nothing stays the same. It’s simultaneously the most frustrating and librating fact of life. We age, we gain weight, we lose weight, children turn our lives upside down and then they leave home, we love our jobs and later we lose interest in them, we’re passionate about tennis until archery suddenly appeals… As humans we need security and surprise in equal measure – that’s what keeps us going and keeps us interested in the game of life.
So, if you’re facing a painful or impossible situation, please remember that this won’t last forever. Something new is around the corner. Cling on, learn what you can from it and wait with open arms for the ‘something else’ because it’s truly on its way.