I am here to talk about the unexpected. Bet you weren’t expecting that…ha... Ok, but honestly, what is more uncomfortable than finally getting into the groove of our routine and then… boom! a bomb goes off and something shifts causing us to re-route our daily lives; one of the most common and annoying scenarios that happens to everyone. I think God likes to see our reactions, it probably gives Him a decent little laugh (He has a sense of humor just like the rest of us). Or He does it because He truly wants to see how much we trust Him and seek His guidance. I am sure most everyone in the world lives by some form of routine. Whether that be a job that one attends five days of the week, an hour someone wakes up/goes to sleep, or a food one consumes, there is a wide variety of ways our lives can unexpectedly be interrupted and it is how we handle that situation that defines our character.
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I live by a routine! I wake up at the same time, I do the same job, I eat at the same time (I have been trying to switch up what I eat to make life have a little *sprinkle* of pizzazz), I take a nap and workout near the same times… it’s honestly kind of sad how much I rely on my routine. Because of that, I have tried to stay aware of it and change things around to keep myself guessing. I’ve had too many occasions in life where unexpected situations would occur causing me to feel confused and lost, most of the time leading me to sit in a state of mild to heavy frustration depending on the situation. It feels as though as soon as I get comfortable in a state of life that I may be in, God goes, “take a hard left!” Come on, man! But He knows the plan and path of my life and although it’s hard at first, it usually turns out for the better. Unless He says left and I (in human nature form) decide to go right then it can be a more time-consuming situation of trying to get life to feel settled again. Now let me clarify, routines are good and, to an extent, healthy depending on each individual. However, if we become so reliant on those routines that it causes us to fold under the pressures of a situation that changed the direction of our normal day, theennn maybe we should consider loosening our grip a little. We never want to find ourselves stagnant, otherwise we have the potential to become dissatisfied and unhappy with the lives we have. Along with that, we will never allow ourselves room to grow. Change is a part of life and that means our routines should be constantly changing and evolving.
Big Change
Now of course there are the small things that might change like if you get invited to a bible study one night a week and therefore your nightly routine might need to shift or you get a new job and need to refigure your whole day. Which are all challenging for a moment, although it is how we handle the big changes that can partially define our character. Things like, maybe a new relationship, a big move, a loss of any kind, a new member of the family, starting/finishing school, a full career shift, and the list could continue. It’s how we deal with and embrace those changes that can lead us into different spirals of emotion. Change is good, but it can also be extremely hard. It is also normal, yet it feels as though life will never continue the way it is supposed to. It can bring new emotions to the surface that otherwise we didn’t realize we controlled so responsibly. Anger, depression, denial, fear, isolation, and betrayal are all huge side effects that could take place. Once a change in the equator takes effect and emotion begins to acquire its place, we need to hit the breaks and evaluate the actual situation. Ask ourselves, “how did I get here?” “Was it self-inflicted?” “This is only an emotion that will last a moment, not a lifetime?” “Are things going to settle?” Maybe it involves another person… have a conversation with them and let them know how you are feeling. Turn the negative into positive, negativity doesn’t get us anywhere. It’s saying it over and over to ourselves that whatever situation we are in will get better and knowing that life will once again feel as comfortable as it did until the world rotates again and we are left to exercise these thoughts and feelings all over. But the more that we are aware of how to deal with it and are comfortable knowing how to talk ourselves down and out of the bubble we hide in, the easier and more enjoyable life will be.
Positivity
I am a huge advocate for positive thinking and speaking. I am a pessimist by nature, however, the older I get, the more I understand the power words have over emotions. If I constantly am telling myself how hard a situation is or how difficult life is then that is how I am going to view my life. But, if I see the situation in front of me, maybe take a minute to collect myself and my thoughts, then tell myself all the positive outcomes that will follow, my emotions will mirror those thoughts. The more you tell yourself a situation will get better and easier, the more you will believe it and the more situations that you practice this, it will potentially become second nature. Now not saying that although we practice this, those moments won't seem hard and gloomy, of course they will! No matter what we plan for, something unexpected will always show its face. If not, we would become complacent and even bored. Little blessings are always hidden in change, it only depends on if we are willing to go searching for them or leave them hidden and let ourselves become buried.
Shared Experiences
We all go through this. It is not that one person was the unlucky winner of change. If a person moved states and is now left to completely rebuild their life, someone has walked through that same experience. If someone finds out they are pregnant, someone has been there too, if someone loses a job, again that person is not alone, etc. And although it may feel like an isolating experience, it’s helpful to talk to others about how we feel and perhaps learn their story and apply it to our own. We should learn from people, and grow to become stronger and wiser for the next. That’s what history is made of; people who learn from others to then create and improve.
Keep Looking Forward
Change starts the new chapters of our story. Our emotions usually start low then build and then a new chapter starts. If we look ahead at our story, we will become confused and see all these moving parts without being able to understand it until we read it sequentially. On the same hand, we should stay looking forward. Continually reading the pages that we’ve already read won't help the story move on. Our past is fun to look back at and remember fun moments or hard moments, to learn from mistakes we have made, or help others from walking in situations that we’ve already been through. But living in the past will only make us feel stuck and miserable. Whether we like it or not the world will always continue to move forward and trying to live in our past can only cause our future to hit us harder. It’s best to see moments and remember, but then let go. Know that today is a new day and that we can create memories to remember tomorrow. We can’t hide from or run away from change and the unexpected future that lies ahead of us, we can only read the page we are on and anticipate what might be on the next.
Let’s be real
No matter what we do, who we are, what our job is, or who we are married or related to, we can not escape from the exhilarating words, “change” or “the unexpected.” We don’t know what will happen tomorrow and as much as we may try to plan for it, things will always come up. We can’t see the future, we can pencil things in, but there are no guarantees. It’s best to live moments to their fullest and understand that change will happen. Routines are a comforting way to live until the routine no longer stays written in pencil. It is best to expect the unexpected and be flexible knowing that life isn’t in our control no matter how hard we try to make it be. We should welcome change and be excited for our future no matter how challenging it may feel at that moment. We should also be mindful of not letting fear take the wheel. It's easy to look at the unexpected and worry about what will happen but, we need to stop trying to control our lives and learn to make the right choices to assist how difficult the path we take will be. It’s like they (they being I am not sure, but I know they have said this) say, our lives have a life of their own. True, they breathe, grow, change, and learn just like us as individuals do. A change is and can be a blessing if we choose to see it.
Ok, what a post. Hopefully whoever was supposed to hear that got something good from it. I hope you enjoyed reading it. I’ve been trying to write this one all week because this one can be a challenge that I try to apply to myself and try to practice. I never want to write about a topic that I don’t already apply to myself, which is great because this keeps me nice and accountable. I hope that you all enjoyed this past week and I look forward to hearing from you like always on both platforms. If you like the blog feel free to subscribe to the Allie-Cat email and also if you enjoy reading these posts, please feel free to share them with someone! Thank you so much for reading and for your support!
Dru Allie
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