A Tryptych on Change

Sally

Spare some change?

Spare some change?

in her child like voice

unkempt and unwashed

so many layers of clothing

socks over socks over stockings

soleless boots, tattered and unlaced

shuffles hurried city sidewalks

she collects scraps of paper

to fill her shopping cart

to fill her silent refuge

Spare some change?

Spare some change?

trade for a small meal

to silence her hunger

maybe her only meal

maybe her last meal

Hey buddy, can you spare some change?

This is a phrase heard in every big city, in every country and in every language. It is a quest for currency to exchange for something that will stifle hunger or shift a mood. It is a plea for change to effect change.

With countless people begging for change, why does it conjure fear in so many? Does it really take emotional, economic or social desperation to appreciate change? In our comfortable world why is change still unwelcome, still unexpected?

No person exists in isolation. We may be the centre of our own universe but we are never the centre of another’s universe. We can control nothing but ourselves. We exist in a dynamic culture. People are born. People grow. People move. People die. There are always new trends, new gimmicks, new technologies and new ways. A door leading to a new future usually closes on a familiar past.  We risk becoming a stranger to the world around us when we are tempted to resist change. Resistance is futile. There has never been a choice to stay as we are.

Communities grow and new opportunities come to life and flourish. Where once there was a field or a mountain view there is now habitation and commerce.  Institutions adapt, build new, welcome new and nurture new.  Without growth, communities age and eventually another ghost town fades into the dust.

We announce change with celebrations of new life. We have parties for a new home. We promise change with New Year’s Resolutions. We celebrate transitions, accomplishments and independence. Change comes disguised as growth: a newborn lies motionless, eventually turns over, then crawls, achieves an unsteady walk, then runs and finally turns to wave goodbye.

Some say change is the new constant. It is the only constant. Birth, death and the rising sun are all harbingers of change. Without something new any system starts to decay. Change renews life.  Life is change.

Hey buddy, can you spare some change?

Being Prepared, How to Shift Change to Opportunity

To provide respite until the predator moves on a turtle pulls back into its shell, a possum plays dead and an armadillo rolls into an armoured sphere. Fear drives responses to transitory changes. They are productive only when the danger is real and the predator can be deceived. They are a comical over-reaction for false alarms and terminal when the predator is more cunning.  

How many of our responses to change are still based on fear? 

How much of life is spent on wagon-circle practice drills?

We assume humans differ from the rest of the animal kingdom because of a consciousness  that takes us beyond instinct: abilities to rationalize, to communicate, to create, to record history, to engage in abstract thinking and  to develop complex relationships. Even with scheduled changes such as the first day of school, moving from one grade to the next, moving onto university or becoming independent, fear responses can creep in.

Change is like the weather - some ancient otherworld force makes it happen. What we do when we feel the effects of change is often mistaken for change. It is really just our particular response. Planting a new crop, moving to take a new job, building new infrastructure are all intended to take advantage of changing situations, to somehow make the future brighter or more certain.  The drive-ins of the 1950’s and 1960’s were redeveloped in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Golf courses and the suburban shopping mall are now in this queue. The redevelopments are not the cause of the changing urban environment. They are a consequence of the social and economic realities of the day.

 

Preparing for the inevitable helps develop resilience and supports us through the unforeseen. Resilience is still an instinctual response but being prepared is that part of humanity that allows us to optimize life. Where some see adversity, others see opportunity. Where some see good luck others see a leveraged opportunity. The difference is expectation and anticipation.

Global connectivity is shifting business practice, education methodologies, career opportunities, social interactions and lifestyles. As with any change the early adapters will ride the crest. In this case, the late adapters risk getting caught in the undertow.