Human society has developed fixed ideas about what is normal and what is acceptable within its framework. Individuals, too, live within self-imposed boundaries that are normal for them. But, like so many words that have evolved into language, they often fall short whenever we attempt to convey our individual concepts to another. Language is merely a tool that we use to paint pictures in the mind for someone else to see. Many words have multiple meanings and using just the right word can make a difference between getting our point across, or having our words completely misconstrued.
Since our world has fallen under the spell of Covid 19, I have heard people lament that they cannot wait for “everything to return to normal”; but this will never happen. Normal is an ambiguous term – a word that provides a false sense of security in a world that is forever changing. We often resist change, kicking and screaming and railing against that which threatens our sense of power.When we are in a state of financial stability and/or when we feel secure in a relationship, we are empowered. Anything that comes along to upset the apple cart, like illness, financial loss,, or the loss of a loved one through death or divorce, can cause us to feel as though the rug has been pulled from under us. We lose our emotional balance, we stumble and fall; but eventually, as they say, we pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.
Life is nothing more than a series of events. Most events are everyday, mundane things that few people take the time to acknowledge. A few of these events are special and memorable. Other events challenge us, tweaking our perceived comfort zone that we have come to believe is normal. You often hear, “It’s always something!” This is true. Every moment presents us with something new. It is our belief about the event and our labeling of it, that colors it as normal, a special moment, or a problem.
Life will never return to normal. If we choose to hang onto yesterday, we choose to suffer. If we accept each moment as it comes, we know that normal is whatever is occurring in that moment. The next moment will always be the new normal.
.
