Change Is Good

I believe change is good. Many people think that change is something to fear and avoid. Even at my young age I can see this is pointless. Unlike death and taxes (which adults love to point to as the only constants in life), change is also always there and actually is something you can use to your advantage. Why not embrace it and see it as a positive?

When I was little, the biggest changes involved reaching a new milestone, starting a new school, trying a new activity, making new friends. When you are a young child, the changes that you face always seem smooth, because your parents make it so. But, as you get older, it is more up to you how you respond to change and make it work for you. Growing up gives you perspective on change, because you have been through enough that you can see from experience that everything will be fine, maybe even great!

A few years ago, I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder affecting my thyroid. As part of the treatment I was tested for food sensitivities. Big change followed as I found out that I could no longer eat many of the things I loved. That meant awkward social situations and no more happy food moments- or so I thought. Now, looking back on how upset I was about it, I realize now that I am actually very lucky that my body let me know that it needed a change so that I can take better care of myself. As a result, I have learned so much about food and nutrition, and have gotten really into vegan & gluten-free baking. Now I find and make my own recipes for things that I cannot regularly eat such as energy bars, muffins and cookies.

A lot of change, especially when you’re young, has to do with school: starting school and then changing schools. It’s just what we do. I’ve handled these changes well because I love school. But I recently had to leave a school I loved and have to adjust to an interim year of independent studies. The upside: I can try new things and have a more flexible schedule. The first few weeks were really up and down, some days I really wished I were at my old school where I was thriving. I have to remind myself that what I make of this unexpected opportunity will directly affect what the experience will mean for me. Next year when I go back to a traditional school environment, I expect that I will miss having this flexibility to think creatively about my studies.

I will look back on these changes later in life and I will be glad that they happened because they have made me who I am and have made me resilient. There is an old, comforting French saying, “The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same.” I am only 13, I know, but when I think about all of the changes I have been through already, it’s obvious that there are still so many more to come in the life I have ahead of me. That means change has to be good, because it is what living a full life is all about. Good or bad, all change leads to growth. You can fight the changes that life brings you, or you can accept and make the most of them. Change is good because change is life. This I believe.