by Ed and Deb Shapiro: There is nothing more certain and unchanging than uncertainty and change. — John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Do you notice how one moment you can be ecstatically happy and
then, just as easily, you can be depressed or sad? Or how something is good and then
turns sour, like a delicious mango that becomes rotten?

The world around us is not the same as it was just a moment ago. People have died, clouds have passed overhead,waves have risen and fallen. Who we are now is not who we were last year, last week,yesterday, even a few minutes ago. Already we have changed, some of our cells havedied while others have been created, while our thoughts, feelings, beliefs, ideas, even our relationships are as changeable as the weather or the seasons.

The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty; not knowing
what comes next. — Ursula K. LeGuin

Change happens in the flash of a moment but the me-centered mind – our self-obsessiveness – needs to make everything appear solid and permanent. We even push death away like an unwanted object, as no one really believes they are going to die.

But just imagine if everything was permanent! Imagine how boring it would be if we were
always the same: there would be no butterflies, no full moon, no cherry blossoms and no
cherries. Change is the reality of every second, so if we resist change then we are
resisting the very meaning of being here, to always become something different, other
than we were before.

Without change in ourselves we become stifled and stagnant.
Being with what is as it is, and integrating the reality of change is wonderfully liberating,
the opportunity to clear away layers of dust and cobwebs and to start anew in each
moment. Just as palm trees transform muddy water into sweet coconut milk, so we can
transform fear into courage, selfishness into kindness, and loss into a new beginning.
Spring is new life bursting forth, and in the same way we can create a new life for
ourselves in every moment.

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a
new ending. — Maria Robinson

Here are 10 ways to make change your best friend:

1- Accept what is! If you can change something, then do; if you can’t change
anything, then release resistance and just be with what is.

2- Take risks. Life is about not having answers, taking chances and risks, and
making the most of every moment, all without knowing what is going to happen
next.

3- Be your own best friend. It is easy to blame and shame yourself, but now is the
time you deserve the most love and kindness of all.

4- Every day is a new beginning. Each time you take a step forward you have no
idea what might happen. But nothing will happen if you continue to stay where
you are.

5- Keep falling as long as you keep picking yourself up! Making mistakes is not
the problem, but not learning from them and moving on is.

6- Nothing lasts forever, so appreciate every moment fully and completely, as it
will never happen again.

7- Think with your heart instead of your head. When you come from your heart
you come to your senses!

8- Meditate. Take time to just stop and breathe, to remember why you are here,
and to find what is of real meaning to you.

9- Don’t take yourself too seriously. A good sense of humor prevents a
hardening of your attitudes, and stops your opinions from getting too rigid!

10- Do something for someone else and make giving to others a part of your life,
especially if it is a smile and a hug.
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Ed Shapiro is the author of The Art Of Mindful Relaxation : The Heart of Yoga Nidra. Deb
is the author of Your Body Speaks Your Mind , now in 19 languages. Award-winning
Authors Ed and Deb are mindfulness, meditation and yoga experts. They have six
meditation downloads. See more at EdandDebShapiro.com