Dead End

     Ever take a drive to somewhere new and find yourself driving down a dead end street? When this happens we turn around, retrace our steps, and shrug off the wrong turn. 

     

     In life I find myself on many dead end roads. I then have to turn around and retrace my steps. That part is easy. The hard part is shrugging off the wrong turn. 

     

     Things change all the time. We change all the time. We change everyday. We change our hair, clothes, diet, routine, desires, beliefs, thoughts. And sometimes in the same day we change back. Sometimes because we want to. Sometimes because we think we have to. But more frequently because we are afraid. I can’t think of any greater fear that the human race has, than that to the fear of change. 

     I myself change all the time. I just can’t make up my mind. I find myself feeling bad for changing so much. Almost apologetic for not staying the same all the time. Then tonight a friend (much like myself in the area of change) offered a great insight; Perhaps we aren’t changing, but rather adapting to situations. Isn’t that what change is? Adaptation? We change our clothes to adapt to the weather, the time of day, the places we go. We change our diet to adapt to the fruits available in the season. We adapt our routines to fit our different schedules. The weather itself adapts to the different atmospheric pressures. Adaptation is a universal law. 

     Dead end streets are a lot like change. Sometimes when your drive down one, you do nothing more than turn around. Other times you see something amazing that you wouldn’t have ever seen. And on few occasions there is that unmarked trail. It’s off the beaten path, so you size it up timidly. It’s human nature to fear going down unmarked roads, just as we fear change. The thing is, if we never drive down the dead ends, how will we ever find those hidden paths?