‘TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE A CHANGE

(A special blog post done with due respect to Clement C. Moore and Major Henry Livingston Jr.)

 

‘Twas the night before a change, when all through my mind,

So many thoughts were stirring of the unsettling kind;

Fear, doubt, and uncertainty began to take hold,

Life outside my comfort zone was about to unfold.

 

I had been nestled all snug in my bed,    

When visions of ‘what might be’ danced in my head;

The scary unknown, my confidence it did snap,

My comfy routine this change would just zap.

 

When all of a sudden I heard all this chatter,   

Not sure what it meant; did it even matter?

I crept to the window, nothing near to a dash,

So nervous was I all my teeth they did gnash.

 

Outside was ablaze in a warm golden glow

The sight of which caused my unsettling thoughts to slow.

What could create this moment of less fear?

Bringing to me a glimpse of good cheer.

 

 

The path of change had been like a slippery slope, 

But that warm golden glow, it filled me with much HOPE.

Slowly, very slowly calm thoughts I did reclaim,

As HOPE sprang eternal and did thus proclaim:

 

 

“Now, THINK! Now LAUGH! Now DREAM and PERSIST!  

Be POSITIVE! Be RESILIENT! And nay-sayers do RESIST!

To the top of your mind! Through every fiber of your being!

Doing these things will make those unsettling thoughts go a fleeing!”

 

 

 

 

 

This journey called life is no piece of cake, 

But what is given to you, the best you must make,

Change will always happen; that is a given,

But it is by HOPE that you must always be driven.

 

 

 

HOPE that when change brings an end to something you love, 

You let go, grieve, accept, move on and rise above.

Roam that wilderness of new, of uncertainty, and doubt;

‘Cause new ideas and discoveries will soon start to sprout.

 

 

 

HOPE that what appears to be the end isn’t that at all,

But really a new beginning giving you a call;

And your vision of how you want things to be,

Provides purpose and meaning; more clearly you’ll see.

 

 

 

 

 

HOPE that by thinking in a creative, divergent way, 

You can cope with all the newness that has entered the fray.

With change, the same as before may not work;

So a new style of thinking may be a perk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HOPE that risk taking gives your courage a boost,

Thoughts of nothing ventured, nothing gained rule the roost;

Mistakes you won’t fear, but from them you’ll learn,

Opportunities they bring; gifts you don’t return.

 

 

 

HOPE that your mindset is flexible and free,

So all options before you, you can see;

Sure, change is different but nothing to fear or dread,

“I can do this” thoughts need to reverberate in your head;

 

 

HOPE that being positive keeps the negative at bay,

Making it easier to deal with whatever comes your way,

Filling you with energy, drive, and desire,

Dealing with any change like a live wire;

 

 

 

 

 

HOPE puts fear, doubt, uncertainty in their place,

Allowing you to face this change with much grace;

In that warm glow of HOPE myself I did enfold,

Knowing in days to come by change I won’t be controlled!

 

May whatever 2016 brings your way, may you always hold HOPE close in your heart. For as Desmond Tutu said, “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.”