The sun is slowly making more of an appearance however limited it is. Its shining prompts us to think of Spring and the inevitable changes to come. Often changes in life can be stressful or not wanted. But just as we cultivate new life in Spring, we can cultivate our approach to change and use it to make memorable moments.
Regardless of whether we have a green thumb or not, it’s difficult to not appreciate the beauty of Spring. Gray and brown give way to green, yellow, and pink. Many of us try to increase the level of beauty by cultivating plants or flowers. I’m a fan of perennials and their recurring blooms and low maintenance. But it’s hard to beat show-stopping annual flowers or the bounty of a well-tended vegetable garden.
Cultivating anything worthwhile demands our time and attention. Whether it’s tending blooming flowers, luscious fruits and vegetables or nurturing a talent or gift, our focus is required. To succeed, effort is necessary and sometimes things don’t always go our way. Seasons change, mother nature intervenes, or other factors and people beyond our control impact our labors. What we do and think in these moments matters.
How we adjust and adapt to changes in something we are cultivating is important. We plan, put in time and effort and then things change. It can cause us to feel mad, sad, or even throw up our hands and give up. While it’s natural to feel emotion, in these moments one of the best things to do is persevere. Perhaps the perseverance involves waiting, changing our previous plans or even abandoning them for a different course of action. But let’s not give up, instead let’s cultivate the change.
Just as we would put time and effort into our original endeavor, the way through change is to persevere and cultivate our reactions and attitude. When change is on the horizon or even at the moment it hits us, our first responses aren’t always positive. But what if in those moments, we attempt to see what’s good about the change?
Maybe the change will open up an avenue or choice we’d never have dreamed of without it. Perhaps in the process of adapting to the change, we’ll learn new things or meet new people we wouldn’t have otherwise. Possibly this change can lead us to an even greater achievement, experience or life purpose. But none of these will happen if we don’t cultivate our reactions and attitude to see change differently.
Sometime this week, something is going to happen to change things up for us. Little things happen daily, but maybe a bigger change will occur. How will we adapt to see good in the change? Try cultivating a different response to adapt and embrace changes this week. See how it makes you and those around you feel. It’s my bet that the slight adjustment of cultivating our responses to change will help us to make even more memorable moments.