Immutare.

“When we make a change, it’s so easy to interpret our unsettledness as unhappiness, and our unhappiness as the result of having made the wrong decision. Our mental and emotional states fluctuate madly when we make big changes in our lives, and some days we could tight-rope across Manhattan, and other days we are too weary to clean our teeth. This is normal. This is natural. This is change.”– J. Winterson

Immutare – latin for ‘change’…

I may be a little too excited about having the random opportunity to find this quote. (Thank you, Pinterest!) When I read this I was all of a sudden completely overwhelmed by the mass amount of truth in this simple statement. I thought I’d share my personal story with you and give a little advice, encouragement, my view, or whatever you may call it, with my wonderful readers. 

Have you ever heard the phrase, “change is the only constant”? I’ve never experienced the value and truth in this statement until graduating high school. Not only did I complete one phase of a young adult life but I was about to step into another one which would be drastically different. I had spent my life in a place that inevitably knew and loved. Once I graduated high school from my small island country, I moved to the 4th largest city in the US, Houston, TX!!! Basically taking me from my pond and releasing me into a huge ocean filled with tons of other fish, whales, sharks…you get the picture. Imagine graduating from a class of 66 and coming here seeing graduating classes of 500+. It was different to say the very least. And among many other things, it. Was. Scary. I was now in a place where I was a minority, and I felt it. People were very different from me. I was different from them. I didn’t know I had an accent until moving to TX when I was the one who thought THEY had the crazy accent. I got here and even though I was living with my mom, sister and stepdad, it was still so new and I was very uneasy. After a few months of not trying to adjust, I quickly took my “unsettledness for unhappiness” and cried to my father about a trip back home…on a one way ticket. I did not want to be here. I didnt care to try and like it. I wanted to go back home. Once my father told me no, I even took it upon myself to still try and find a way back even if I could not live with him. I just did not like Texas. Or so I thought. To say that my “mental and emotional state fluctuated madly” would be an understatement. Looking back on it, I was plain old dramatic. And I’m so thankful my father, at the time FORCED me to remain in Texas and give it some time. 

After I enrolled in university Spring 2009, it took me little to no time at all to get involved, meet new people and make connections that I still hold dear to me this very day. I now absolutely LOVE Houston, TX and I have been blessed with countless opportunities, met so many amazing people and had unforgettable experiences that I otherwise would not have had, had I ran back to my comfort zone.

We need to embrace change, especially as young adults. No matter how painful, scary, intimidating, or overwhelming it may seem at first, change is different, its natural and it should be welcomed. Some days are always more difficult than others but thats all apart of growing. Its a part of progress. Its part of life and it does get better. Once you adjust, you embrace and suddenly you accept and even enjoy what was once unwelcomed. And this goes for all things: big moves, friendships, relationships, jobs, personal goals and journeys…everything! Change is indeed the only constant because it is the only thing we can be sure of…along with taxes and death. But unlike those, change is a great thing as I’ve come to learn. 
Denying change is denying opportunities, denying progress and denying growth. 

Embrace change, my friends.