Embracing Change

By Kari Diane Pike

It's 2:14 a.m. and counting...The turkey is cooked and the triple chocolate pumpkin pie is cooling on the counter. The potatoes are ready to be mashed and everything else is set out to bake fresh rolls, caramel apple cheesecake bars, and banana caramel cream trifle. Oh..and I can't forget the ham and the sweet potato casserole - with marshmallows on one half and brown sugar topping on the other.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What can I say that you haven't already read a bajillion times over in your social media? Did you know that when you post a comment on Facebook it will be seen by more than 150,000 people in less than a week?

With so many people sharing status' about what they are grateful for every day, I've been poundering on what to share with you today. I'm thankful I have access to the Internet again. I missed my last post because we moved into a brand new house and it took a couple of weeks to get everything set up. (I'm thankful the new house, too!)

Moving into our new home signals the beginning of a new start in our lives. As many of you know, we spent the last 15 months living with our oldest son and his family. We lived in a tent trailer in my sister-in-laws driveway for a couple of months before that. My husband loves his job and our youngest son, the last fledgling in the nest, is doing well in his new school. It's a time of change...and a prelude to the bigger changes I see looming on the horizon.

Change is an interesting word. We can change our clothes, our address, our jobs and our minds. Parents change diapers, tellers make change, and if you don't like the weather in Utah, wait 10 minutes and that will change too. The scriptures teach us that the most wonderful kind of change is a change of heart.

 I used to be afraid of change. There are still days when I wish I lived in a bubble. But I also recognize that staying in that bubble means I'll miss opportunities to learn and grow. And what if bad things never came to an end? Heavenly Father's plan requires opposition in all things for a reason.

As I sit here in the middle of the night, listening to the gentle snoring of my adult children home for the holiday, and think about the years gone by and all the changes I have experienced, the future feels a lot less scary. I'm not completely comfortable with the idea of being an empty-nester in less than 2 years. I'm certainly less than thrilled to think about my parents' mortality. But I have the constancy of the gospel to guide me through these new challenges. I guess that is what I am most grateful for: a knowledge of God and who He is and who I am. I am grateful for the Savior's atonement that makes it possible for me to change my heart and my life.
 

 hugs~