Keep the Change: Why the Unknown is Good

We plan wedding dates. Doctor check-ups. Job interviews. Reservations for a restaurant. What underwear to wear (depending on the outfit). Majors for college, while we are in middle school. We even use planners, calendars, I-Phone note pads, etc. We pine away all night thinking about the day’s details and what tomorrow holds in store. So why is it, after every day of having the unexpected happen, that we still try to plan out our lives?

 Well, take it from the girl who already has the paint of her future house picked out: change should be embraced, not avoided.

 
SCENE: “Uncertainty”

SETTING: Freshman Year, First Semester

Last year, during my first semester of college, change hit me like the big ice cream truck that drives around Albright’s campus. I was unsure of all of my decisions. My college. My majors. My future job. My hair color.

I was having a mid-life crisis at the age of 18. Was it really that extreme? Actually, yeah. I felt like I hadn’t gotten into the rigorous musical theatres programs that I had so desperately wanted to get into. I got wait-listed to the college I would have donated ligaments to get into (heh, joking). Albright was the only college with 100% financial aid guaranteed, which I needed because of my family’s financial hardship. My boyfriend was working full-time, I hardly had any friends, and I didn’t have a roommate. Naturally, I cried. A LOT. I wasn’t trying out for shows because I was obsessed with having my grades be perfect. I got an on campus job, but was afraid to volunteer for hours because I wasn’t sure if I would do everything properly. I wanted to be perfect. Have everything perfect. I mean, we start planning for college from elementary school, so isn’t everything supposed to be perfect?

            My obsession drove me insane, and it wasn’t until I let change into my life that everything fell into place. Suddenly, I was gifted with a roommate. Someone who is now, practically, my sister. She introduced me to more people, and slowly I began to befriend everyone in my hall—people I hid from before. I accepted that I hadn’t gotten into the top colleges that I had applied to, but, I was blessed enough to be receiving a worthwhile education at a reputable (and caring) college. One that I love x’s 100. Remember, not everyone is given the privilege of college! I changed my triple major to Theatre/Communications, and haven’t looked back since. I got an additional on-campus job, and a lead in the Spring play. Things turned positive for me, things changed in my life.

 
This is why humans struggle. We all fear change and avoid it like the “Black Plague”. We set our lives up to fit our personal standards/wants/goals, only to have them constantly altered. If you don’t know what you’ll be eating for dinner tomorrow, how can you know what your job will be in 5+ years? Pursue your dreams to the fullest, but let other opportunities present themselves to you. Too many times we prepare our track for ourselves, only to block out all other possibilities.


And so, my readers, I leave you with this last piece of advice:

It’s okay, keep the change.