Sometimes we feel happy and sad all at once.   Sometimes we smile and miss someone at the same time.  Sometimes we love one another and hate what we have become. Sometimes we get stuck or feel the pull of going backwards, and in the middle of this “sometimes mess” we realize our life is in transition. This process is a necessary part of waking us up to other possibilities in order to make changes in our life’s.

Sometimes … transition is out of our control and painful.

Going from girlhood to teenager and then into a young woman can be unpredictable.  One day you are riding bikes and climbing the highest tree, the next day you are in a ball in bed with abdominal pain and bleeding.   You may think you are dying.  A few years later, boom YOU ARE WOMAN!  The metamorphosis is complete but the brain feels like it has been hot-wired wondering “who invaded my mind and body?”

Sometimes … transition is necessary, painful, and rewarding.

In life the unimaginable can occur.  Envision a young girl of eleven years old transplanted to a foreign country as her parents stay in Cuba until they are granted asylum in the United States.  For over five years she and her older brother live together in Miami learning the language, fending for themselves, missing their Mom and Dad and Abuela.  Tears were shed, nights were the worst when anger erupts as confusion sets in.  Ultimately after the heart rendering embrace of their reunited family, they can start to see the sacrifice their parents made in order to have a better life.

Sometimes … transition is stressful and chaotic and needed.

Love sometimes turns to bitterness and ultimately, the split or divorce.  The hard part is the transition from resistance to acceptance, from no to yes.  In order to do this you have to shed all your layers of rage, anger, fear, sadness, betrayal, and rejection before you find that inner spirit that will allow you to thrive, to be YOU!

Sometimes … transition takes courage and willingness to except the unknown.

Career choices can be a beast.  Maybe your degree does not provide for opportunities as you exit into the real world of job hunting.  Selling encyclopedia’s certainly was not exactly your idea of a good job as you realize your degree in philosophy closed too many doors.  A friend offers a suggestion … go back to school and become a computer analyst.  Scary, as you go into debt and ten years later, you realize, best decision I ever made!

Sometimes … transition can be uncomfortable and rewarding.

We are all afraid of the unknown … going to college in another city knowing no-one, taking the plunge on opportunity, switching from single to married or career minded to being a Mom.  Sometimes you have to rethink your priorities in order to make the changes occur.  These are lessons we need to learn which takes us out of our comfort zone and on to new beginnings.

Sometimes … transition can be sudden or unexpected.

The death of a child or spouse or loved one is one of the most painful events in our lives. Dealing with a cancer diagnosis or losing a job or even menopause can be a time of worry.  Family dynamics can interfere with this difficult transitional period or I like to think it can bring families closer together relying on each other to gain the strength and resilience we need to deal with this emotional upheaval. Time is the all time healer and we need to respect the space between fighting to hold on and fighting to let go.

Sometimes … transitions are jumping off points and definitely scary.

Retirement is in all of our futures.  Fear of the unknown still exists as we grow older but embracing this transition allows for that serendipitous change to occur.  After all each day will definitely be different. Being prepared financially and emotionally is the key; being unprepared is the scary part.  It can be a time of reinvention of a newer version of yourself.

Our choices in life are our own.  Sometimes, transitions are necessary for a change to occur.  It can be messy so we can choose to be trapped and lost or to soar, to live a life of courage and embrace each new day unafraid of who we are becoming.