#35 Days of Dares #34 Dare to Change
In this first week of Autumn in the southern hemisphere I’m reminded of the fact that I change, just like nature does in the seasons. In Autumn we see the leaves begin to change colour and fall. The trees ready themselves to shut down over winter in order to bloom in the spring.
Each season has its purpose and beauty.
Spring and autumn are my favourite seasons. Perhaps it’s because they mark a change in the weather and temperatures become less extreme. It could also be because these are the seasons in which we witness the most change.
Tulips: Seattle in Spring
What makes seasonal change so much more attractive to us than personal change? Our lives are continuous creations. We evolve and change as time goes by. We are works in progress. If we are not changed, we are not growing.
Where there’s no progress, there’s no growth. If there’s no growth, there’s no life. Environments void of change are eventually void of life. Andy Stanley
After reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s book The Signature of All Things I came across the notion of Continuous Creation. I’ve always felt uncomfortable for some reason with the extreme views of both creationism and evolution. Neither seemed to satisfy the questions I had and I put it all away on a shelf marked with, ‘Questions to be answered later and, in the meantime, just have faith!)
I’m not a scientist, but the term Continuous Creation Theory made some sense to me and the phrase rolled around my consciousness for a while. I like to think of my life and work as a continuous creation. Even if we don’t recognise it, there are changes in us every day.
This past week, I woke up to find my jeans didn’t fit and I realised my body had changed. Now I’m at the gym and reassessing my nutrition to change it again!
When I reread my first few books, I realise that my writing has changed and developed over the years and I feel like I’m getting better.
Last night I attended the engagement party and a boy I used to drive to primary school is now twenty seven years old! How did that happen?
Change is a fact of life.
Without change, we don’t grow.
Embracing change is part of life’s adventure. I know people who resist change, who seem to be stuck in a comfortable time warp, or who are fearful of stepping out into something new. I’m not thrilled by that way of living.
I like to think that each day is a fresh beginning.
That my life has seasons of change.
Living a life of adventure means I’m constantly doing new things, stretching my boundaries and hopefully, expanding my world.
God, the author of creation and creativity, calls us to be continually renewed. Isn’t that a call to continuous creation?
Autumn Arrowtown New Zealand
#365adventure is a book lover’s year of adventures. Adventures in travel, friendship, family, soul, heart and, of course, book stores!
