Change is possible (and inevitable).
“If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are.”
— Famous Zen Buddhist Proverb
In today’s world, things are changing near the speed of light. The technology driving our global economy needs an update almost as soon as it’s created. It even drives many to view modern change as something to be dreaded and even avoided. Futurist Alvin Toffler wrote: “In describing today’s accelerating changes, the media fire blips of unrelated information at us. Experts bury us under mountains of narrowly specialized monographs. Popular forecasters present lists of unrelated trends, without any model to show us their interconnections or the forces likely to reverse them. As a result, change itself comes to be seen as anarchic, even lunatic.”
Those who adopt a positive attitude understand that change is inevitable — it’s a natural part of the ebb and flow of reality. As life travelers, we must make sure our compass reflects the reality of change — that means flexibility in our expectations. Let’s revisit Victor Frankl, the concentration camp survivor and noted psychologist. Prior to World War II, Frankl had every reason to expect to live out a relatively pain free life as a therapist in Vienna. Even as he was dragged away to a “death camp,” Frankl continued to practice an attitude of hope and refused to allow his preconceptions to be so rigid as to break under the yoke of the Nazis.
Although Frankl suffered tremendous loss — his wife, parents and home — he nevertheless journeyed on and used the horrific experience to help thousands of others through his clinical practice and his literary works.
Frankl writes in “Man’s Search for Meaning:
“Just as a small fire is extinguished by the storm whereas a large fire is enhanced by it-likewise a weak faith is weakened by predicament and catastrophes whereas a strong faith is strengthened by them.”[1]
[1] Frankl, Victor: Man’s Search for Meaning, New York: Washington Square Books, 1984
