New Chapter, Same book

I think that different people react very differently to change. One year or so ago, I'd probably have placed myself within the group of people who fear change. I've been quite privileged so far in my life to grow up in an environment of stability and predictability, and as a result, any active alteration in that environment has seemed a scary prospect. I think it's undeniably easier to remain within your comfort zone, without seeking nor desiring change, and to maintain a constant lifestyle, because it seems reassuring and safe- there are fewer doubts, fewer risks. 

Yet at this point in my life I am faced with new and exciting changes, and I find myself no longer dreading them, as I might have expected, but instead accepting them, appreciating them and even searching for them. 

One of the changes I am faced with is the prospect of moving house. After nearly 7 years in my English hometown of Sevenoaks, I have now said goodbye to my old home, and have returned for a while to spend time in my previous house in France (where I spent the first 12 years of my life). This change is not insignificant for me, as I am leaving behind a life and lifestyle that I had grown accustomed to, along with my friends and my home. 

I cannot help but compare it to the one other occasion that I remember moving house- the exact opposite move, in fact, when I came to England from France aged 12. At the time, the uncertainty seemed daunting and for a long time I was very angry and upset at the thought of change, of having to live in a new place, of making new friends and of having to adapt to an entirely new school system in a different language. 

But this time round, an older and hopefully wiser me isn't put off by the thought of change. Of course it's easier this time, since I'm not 12 and I'm returning to somewhere I already know. But, coupled with the other changes occurring in my life right now- such as the process of renting my first house and moving out of halls, I'm excited by what this move will mean for me. As they say, "As one door shuts, another one opens".

I think that is exactly what changes are. They are doorways to new experiences and opportunities, and without them we would remain in the same room forever, without ever getting a chance to explore the world around us. Without change, we only know what is, we don't know what was or what could be. 

I also like to think of big changes as new chapters in the long book of my life. Characters will come and go and settings will change, but all the chapters will remain tightly bound in my memory. Like any good novel, some chapters will be bleaker than others, and some happier.  But without all these chapters in my life, I would have no story. 

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