“This Too Shall Pass,” as believed to be originated form Edward FitzGerald as retold from a Persian Fable. This year is almost at an end—we are 11 days into November and this is one time I truly don’t know how it happened so fast.  It has been a tumultuous year, a year of change and simultaneous stagnation, a year of progress and steps back, a year of courage and fear, a year of decisiveness and uncertainty-and a year of things coming out of left field.  As we approach the end of the year I find myself reflecting over what has happened and trying to assign meaning to the events that happened and realizing that there is a common theme: moving forward and adaptability.  Time moves forward no matter what we do and it is up to us to decide how we move with it.  We seek predictability in our lives both for safety and control, and this year has been anything but predictable.  I can’t say it’s been devastating (it has in some regards) and I can’t say it’s been terrible (it has in some regards) and I can’t say it’s something I wouldn’t do again (it has in some regards) but the truth is this life is never perfect and we never have everything our way.  So what is the difference in the feeling of this year?

Well, there were things we had expectations on personally, professionally, in our relationships, in our homes, with friends etc. that started off well and ended up off course in some ways.  Sometimes terrible events are great unifiers and sometimes things we thought we saw eye to eye on is where the divide begins.  In times of upheaval and change there is unpredictability and we need to find who we are even if it means letting go of familiarity and stepping out on our own ground—which in itself is terrifying.  I’ve had multiple conversations with people over the last several months about taking the leap.  I’ve had many references to taking the leap and I’ve had a growing feeling that it is indeed time to do something different.  The body reflects what the soul knows and when the soul knows it’s time to move on and do something different, the body gives signs.  We get feelings, we get hunches, we see signs about what to do next.  So what we need to remember is this: nothing is permanent.  The state we are in physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally isn’t permanent and when things change, we are to adapt with it but we have the warning and the indicators of what to do next. 

While we don’t understand the reasoning behind everything, we have to trust that there is a reason—and the reason may not be known until the unseen pieces come together.  Nothing is permanent, everything changes and we are to change with it.  so, the opening quote: “This Too Shall Pass.”  This is a reminder that impermanence.  Looking at our family’s, our friends, our goals, our evolution, we see that we are ever changing and that we are not the same as we were even a few months ago.  Every hard moment, every victory, every fail, every win, every pain, and every sorrow has faded away.  While there may be some marks left behind, the moment is gone and we have made it through.  There are great scars in some areas of our lives but we are here and we have learned from them—and we are here to tell the story.  We are here to learn.  While things are unpredictable and often arrive in ways we wouldn’t have foreseen, they all come together in the end.  The things we need somehow always have a way of turning up right on time, exactly when and where we need them.  We can’t allow ourselves to be so comfortable with the way things are that we forget this evolution and the point of it: this is a journey and we have a role, a purpose.  We can fulfill that if we never become who we are meant to be and that journey turns us into the person who can fulfill that journey.  So when things feel like they are lost, even when they feel great, remember that we are always in flux and we aren’t meant to seek comfort: we are meant to seek purpose.  While these events pass in our lives, we become who we are supposed to be and we end up exactly where we should be, passing through our own evolution and leaving behind a legacy of purpose.  So let the changes happen, let them pass because they are always taking us where we need to be in the end.