How Do You Conquer a Season of Transition?

There’s a lot of change going on around me right now.

My son and his wife are awaiting the arrival of their baby, which is due in early August. They’re also moving into a new home before then. Well, that’s the plan, anyway. We all know due dates are approximations, right?
My middle daughter and her husband are moving back to Colorado from Georgia.
My youngest daughter is heading to college in less than a month.

“Change” for my family involves packing boxes and scheduling moving vans, as well as new life, new homes, new states, new jobs, and new friends.

Lots of adjustments.

And there’s no skipping any of it.

One thing I’ve learned: Transition is hard.

There’s no way to soften that statement or pretty it up. Even when you want the change – when the change is good and welcome and written on the calendar – transition is hard.

When we’re in transition, life isn’t what it was and it isn’t what it’s going to be. We’re caught somewhere in the middle, waiting for everything to settle out into the new “normal.” But until then, we’re uncomfortable.

And I don’t know anyone who likes to be uncomfortable.

Here’s my analogy for transition:

It’s like you were sitting in a familiar little boat named “Normal” that was tied securely to a dock. And then someone came and cut the boat loose from the dock. Now you’re floating downstream and you don’t know how long this voyage is going to last. You just want to get to the next dock, where you can tie your “Normal” boat back up and feel secure again.

 Of course, it helps ease the transition if we’ve chosen the change. The new baby or the new home or the new school. But sometimes, the shift is unplanned or unwelcome, making everything all the more challenging.

With time, I’ve learned to accept the uncomfortableness of all the flux with a little more grace than I used to. Picturing that little “Normal” boat floating downstream reminds me that, yes, we’re moving from the known to the unknown, and this helps me stretch emotionally as we navigate uncharted waters.

And just because something is hard, that doesn’t mean it is impossible. I remind myself that I’ve been through upheaval before – moves overseas, an unexpected deployment, health crises – and I’ll figure out how to manage life change again.

We’re either settled in our normal … or we’re in transition. Comfortable … or uncomfortable. Of course, normal is nice, but transition is not optional. We just need to remember it is survivable. Transition is movement … a progression – not a permanent place of residence.

 

How Do You Conquer a Season of Transition? http://bit.ly/30LMeF4 #change #encouragement
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' ... Transition, in labor, is the most painful time. Without change, there is no growth.' Quote by Mimi Kennedy http://bit.ly/30LMeF4 #transition #perspective
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