Change

Change.

Here is a word that many fear, others search with vigor, and which leaves most with butterflies in their stomachs.

Whether for better or worse, we are in a constant state of change.

Physical, mental, spatial, temporal.

Time passes and we pass by with it, after all, as the philosopher Heraclitus said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice”.

Early in life, we are optimistic about change. We look forward to our next birthday, the next school year (and the holidays, of course), the next few inches of our height.

Every milestone is a victory: the first teeth that fall out, the first period, the first bra, the first kiss.

As we grow up, these achievements come with more effort: passing the college entrance exam, getting our first job, being promoted, moving into our first house or apartment, getting married, having children.

Some steps are universal. But each person has their own pace and goals.

For some, raising a family is above any career achievement. For others, freedom of time and space is worth more than setting down roots. There are also those who will do anything to prove themselves in their craft.

Whatever your dream is, I'm sure one thing is needed to achieve it: change.

If everything stays as it is, how are you going to get from the place you are now to the place you want to be?

It's not just a matter of effort, of opportunities, though all of this counts for a lot in order to accomplish something.

And this change can be tricky. It's much simpler, more comfortable, to stay with what we know. The familiar is very attractive, as it is the remedy for fear of the unknown.

Isaac Newton already told us about the so called inertia and how a body tends to remain in its natural state of equilibrium. That's why getting our ass off the couch after three straight episodes of Grey's Anatomy is so hard. That’s why looking for a new job to get out of the one that makes us unhappy requires extreme strength.

But, bear with me, if we are already in constant change, due to the passage of time we talked about earlier, the First Law of Physics also applies here, as it also states that a moving body tends to stay in motion.

Therefore, I would say that what defines us is the possibility of change. To be able to reinvent ourselves. To follow new paths and switch the course of our history.

So how about you? Where do you want to be?

PS: I had no idea the knowledge of Philosophy and Physics I had acquired at school was still in me. Very grateful to my teachers Jean and Newton for this.

PPS: yes, my physics teacher’s name is Newton. Prophetic, isn't it?