Another Reflection on Change

“We have real difficulty here because everyone thinks of changing the world, but where, oh where, are those who think of changing themselves?” - Richard Foster

Now that is a very interesting query. It brings a few things to mind.

People do change! They just don't think about it. We change the style of clothes we wear. We change our habits of communication. We change the meaning of some of the words we use. We change jobs. We change spouses. We change residences. We age, therefore, we change. But we don't think about intentional change very much at all. And when we do think about it, I would suggest that we do so because we are forced to, mostly, not because we want to.

Another thought I have is that we do not think so much of changing the world as we think of the need of “others” to change. There is a sense in which we believe that if everyone was like us – thought like us, acted like us – the world would indeed change and be much better. But then if you reconsider my premise in the former paragraph, having everyone be like us would be quite disastrous.

Then there is the whole matter that though we might give some consideration to changing the world, we often do so without contemplating how the world has already changed and is changing – whether we give it a thought or not. Some of the thinking about changing the world is NOT forward thinking. Such thinkers would have us go back in time. And some thinking about changing the world is, for me, too radically forward. In both of these instances, the thinkers are clearly not giving any consideration to the wisdom of self-change.

And, finally, there are those who do understand that changing the world means changing themselves. And they are tremendously frightened! If you know what you know for having lived with it and through it for the past 40 or 50 or 60 years, how will you live in a changed world about which you know so very little, if anything at all? We are not frightened by change. We experience too much of it in our lives day by day to be scared of it. We are frightened by that which we do not know: what will be the result of the change and will we be able to live in it, with it, through it.

Are we having fun yet?

Can one ever have enough fun? Now there's a question.

Just a few minutes ago, Jack took his house toy over to Rob. This was an obvious invitation to play. Rob's response: “Didn't you have enough fun last night?” Which caused me to wonder: Can you ever have enough fun?

Once we get to be adults, it is, of course, not mature to have fun for the sake of fun. But oh how we envy our children and grandchildren who do just that. Who play for hours at nothing but having fun. Fun stacking grandma's pots and pans. Fun skipping rope. Fun playing dress up. Fun making snow angels. Fun rolling in mud. Fun, fun, fun.

As we get older, our fun must be more mature. Playing a gentlemanly game of bridge. (“Gentlepersonly” didn't seem to go well there.) Playing a serious – with legal dictionaries – game of Scrabble. “Of course, I'm only doing this to have some fun!...and to Win!” Having guests in for a dinner party – work, work, work. There are many ways that adults pass time having fun. And we do, we really do. But not too much!

We have to work. We have to be responsible. We have to lead by example. Isn't it odd that we can readily apply that third sentiment to the first two but would seldom think of applying it to having fun?

I'm not advocating recklessness or sheer abandonment. I don't want to see anyone get hurt or pointlessly embarrassed. However, I am aware that there is a growing cadre of those who advocate the importance and value of play. It renews and rejuvenates and refreshes in ways that are very needful but not readily provided otherwise.

Of course, many reading this already know that I am an ardent advocate for vacations. Always have been. They need not be excessive or expensive but an intentional break away from the routine, the required, the responsibilities can, I do believe, make the routine and the required and the responsibilities much more meaningful and enjoyable. I am not sure that you can ever have too much play, too much fun. What do you think?

Borrowing wisdom from others

“Being ready for seeds of change means being a fertile plain for odd ideas.   Nurture the unusual when possible and never kill ideas outright.”   A friend of mine posted this on facebook.   What a tremendously profound, practical, and meaningful sentiment.

“Being truly radical is making hope possible and despair unconvincing.”   Thanks to another facebook friend for sharing this one.

I think both of these statements give us lots to think about.   I don't need to add anything for now.   What do you think?