CHANGE AND THE NEW NORMAL

 


The bamboo that bends is stronger than the oak that resists.  ~Japanese Proverb


I have never given much thought to change.  Like many things, I took change for granted as inevitable until it effected me personally.  Years ago, I listened to a radio station program that was suddenly taken off the air for no apparent reason.  When it disappeared, I wrote a scathing letter to the radio station that was picked up by a local television station as part of a story that aired on the news.  Of course my letter did nothing to bring the program back any more than railing against the universe will cause my husband's cancer to disappear.  

After Ernie's initial diagnosis, we both began to notice slight physical changes that could be attributed to the cancer and the chemo drug he was taking orally.  He developed numbness in his feet and had mobility issues as a result.  He bought a scooter and had a lift installed on the back of our Yukon.   He tired more easily, so naps became important.  As issues arose, he discovered solutions to remedy them.   His ability to meet the challenges and changes that occurred taught me and continues to teach me to do the same.  

With changes, we are learning to adjust to this 'new normal'.  Life certainly is not as it once was and will never be as it was again, but the very act of being alive means change and if we bend with it, we will both be stronger.