By Corrie Lynne Player
Like most of you, I really thought we would have a bit more peace as the COVID vaccination became available and our governor put reasonable restrictions in place, including some deterrents that were most onerous.
But my world has been turned upside-down in the last several months. Our primary client failed to pay its hefty bill and I developed a serious infection that required daily IV antibiotics for six weeks. Gary and I closed our main office and laid off our two remaining employees. Our adult children decided that our huge house was too much for us to handle. So, we sold it and moved into a daylight apartment in our eldest son’s house (not too far from where we had lived for nearly 30 years).
My life keeps shifting and evolving. I’ve never welcomed change. Sometimes I become downright belligerent about unexpected circumstances. However, I’ve finally come up with at least two strategies for dealing with unwanted changes: Find opportunity in change and hang on to hope.
Find Opportunity in Change
Face it: life is uncertain. We have no idea what’s going to happen in the next five minutes, let alone tomorrow or next month. The company you work for might go bankrupt and your job might vanish. You might step off the curb and break your ankle. Your daughter might party away her scholarship and flunk out of college. Mortal life involves all sorts of “stuff,” bad, as well as good. In our challenges we often find blessings. Change, though we may abhor it, usually brings unforeseen opportunities.
My broken feet and assorted other ailments have forced me to slow down, to prioritize and focus on what really matters. I’m able to do a lot more writing than I could when I was juggling main office matters and several employees.
My sister, Celestia Whitehead (who has been my guest columnist a few times) was widowed for the second time last year and her beloved dog died two days after her husband’s funeral. Finding herself totally alone, she threw herself into finishing and publishing an historical account of our parents’ homesteading in Alaska. Bring Me Wild Roses has become a lasting legacy for our family. And is available on Amazon.
Losing a job might lead to going back to school and a different career. Being laid up, physically, could be an opportunity to take an online course, read books that have stacked up, or simply learn to accept situations over which you have no control.
Hang on to Hope
You and I can control our responses to what happens. We can have hope; we can look forward to the future. No matter what challenges we face, we can be optimists. Hope allows us to mentally re-cast events to find the blessings amidst the trials.
Hope isn’t a vague concept; it’s wired into our DNA by God. He is our creator, our Father who loves us beyond what we could possibly understand. In Greek mythology Hope was the one positive force that remained in Pandora’s Box (jar). The rest that came flying out were all the trials and troubles that plague mankind. Hope means that “this too shall pass, and dawn will come” it is the counterbalancing force that pushes away doubt and fear.
Finally, I want to thank you, my readers, who have become my friends over the past 30 plus years. Like everybody else, I’ll continue to face change. I’m grateful that I can lose myself in writing. It allows me to ignore or banish upsetting situations; my writing will continue as long as I’m still breathing.
Do you struggle to find hope? How do you deal with uncertainty? Please let me know your coping mechanisms.
Contact me at heavenhelpusbeourbest@gmail.com or http://www.corrielynneplayer.com.
