I believe... no, I KNOW that attitude is everything. And by that I mean that my response to what goes on in my life has a huge effect on how well things turn out. Whether we are deep in a given season or a change of seasons is looming, I’ve learned that we can use each season’s unique energies to reassess and celebrate life. Winter’s comtemplation, spring’s new growth and blossoming of that which has long gestated, summer’s high energy and passionate “plunging in” as well as the quieting influences of the autumn, as we survey what we have harvested and plan for our future needs.

Lately it seems that my life is throwing me curve after curve after curve. Just when I think I have a handle on how to manage things, a major piece of the puzzle changes and I am all of a sudden looking at a whole new picture.

Sound familiar? From the conversations I have been having with quite a few other folks, I’m not alone. There seems to be something in the air, testing our ability to roll with the punches. As new technologies speed up communication and revolutionize how we do almost every little thing in our lives, it often brings with it the need for us to react quicker to the increasingly more complex situations generated by these advances. In response, we are changing careers, life partners, locations and even core beliefs at faster and faster paces as we attempt to adjust to constant change.

Truthfully, often times we of the current generation were not born into families that taught us to embrace change. Many of us were raised to work toward a career that would last a lifetime, our parents having often worked for the same company or organization their whole adult lives. Divorce was much more rare and people generally stayed in one town through their whole career unless the company failed. Many things we have are disposable. How often do we make repairs to our clothing, our shoes, our machines or our furniture? Instead, we replace, we upgrade, we discard, we occasionally recycle and we move on.

So, our high tech lives have us on the run. For me, I am able to cope by paying attention to how I am feeling, what I am thinking and then working very carefully with what I discover inside myself. If I find that I am feeling fearful or anxious, I follow a piece of advice given to me by my mentor, Linda Heron Wind. Heron suggested that I give my mind something positive to fix on, like an affirmation or a song. I chose a chant that I love, a very simple, uplifting song that makes my heart sing. I sing it in my head or aloud to soothe my soul and clear my mind. It sends me the message that I am taken care of no matter what and allows me to guide my actions from a clear minded place. The decisions I have made after calming myself have repeatedly been good ones, bringing me to a better place than my fear based decisions ever do.

That practice has taught me the value of a positive attitude in the face of the unknown. Whether you call it positive thinking, faith or having a good attitude, it is clear to me that in these times we are living in, we are being called to shift and fl ow at a faster and faster pace all the time. We need to adjust our way of living and embrace change as the opportunity and adventure that it really is. If we do that, we will not only survive life’s challenges, we will thrive in them and find our selves living happily even as we face some of our greatest life changes, all thanks to living with deep peace of mind, a hopeful heart and a positive attitude.