Since I was young I have been aware of the fleeting quality of life, how things continue to change.  As a youngster the way life unfolded in an unpredictable way challenged me.  I wasn’t consciously aware of aging but I continued to get older and change grades.  And in my young mind I was aware that as time marched on things would never be the same like I would never be in sixth grade again.  The feeling around change was scary as there was so much uncertainty around being alive.

As winter weather asks us to go inward, I have been reflecting upon the impermanence of life.  So today, we may feel worn out, over-worked and distant from our loved ones.  In this moment in our tired cranky selves it is easy to buy into the experience, and attach to it.  I am overwhelmed, therefore that is what I am and the experience feels permanent.  Or my knees are achy and I feel discouraged in what appears to be my lack of strength.

Unlike my experience as a young person, I recognize the gift of impermanence.  I may feel imbalanced and weak in my knees today but this experience is malleable and can change.  If we recognize our discomfort in our bodies, health, relationships, as a place with the potential to become different, it helps us release our resistance to what is already present.  I may be suffering from an unbearable cold but know that this is a moment and a way to return to health.  How can we embrace the impermanence rather than resist it?

Sunsets in New Mexico are heartbreakingly beautiful as they line the sky with pinks and reds and oranges that make up breath-taking awe.  As I notice them, they always seem to bring me back to the impermanence, the heartaches I have experienced, the fleeting joy, and the moments where everything lines up in my favor.  They bring me back to the presence of this magical moment that is only here and looks so splendidly awesome in the moment and changes in a matter of minutes.  This reflection, allows me to stay grateful and try not to brace against the impermanence but fall into it as if it is something that will continue to open my heart.