Changes

Many unexpected changes happened today. As we traveled 1300 miles across the country we learned that several family members are unable to join us for various reasons. So we cancelled a bus ticket, a hotel, and a rental car reservation. Then, we changed our route to pick up our daughter in the final hours of our destination. When we arrived to open up the house, the electricity did not work. This meant we couldn’t turn on the water which uses an electric pump to bring up the well water. Without this basic necessity, dinner plans changed. Darkness was quickly descending, so we checked out our favorite beach. This too is changed. Several storms this past year caused the ocean to break through the dunes. This breach required the complete removal of one large beach house and is now threateningly close to some others as well as a fresh water river.

Changes that re-adjust plans can also change us; plans that always run smoothly don’t provide opportunities for growth through challenging circumstances. Learning to live with and smooth out rough edges allows us to be transformed into something wonderful and new, like a pearl.