Life changes ... Our adjustments

We may all be moving to cheaper forms of transportation if the price of gas holds at these levels and continues to climb. Surely the price of a gallon of gas used to fuel Lyle's motorcycle in this picture was much less than the $2.76 I paid this morning to fill up my truck. I am told that once we reach a given price per gallon for gas it is not long before we make the adjustments and accept the new price. The new price becomes the norm as we adjust our tolerance level up.

Life changes call for adjustments. We may not like the changes, but we have to make the adjustments in order to move forward.

I stopped by to drop off some information for Pastor Fred this week. We talked about life and how things were going as we continued to work through the loss of our friend. One of the things we talked of centered on our view of life after a dramatic change. We really would like to go back. I know I am not the only one who would prefer to roll the calendar back more than six weeks and see what could be done to avoid our loss. We cannot do that and so we are left to consider what to do about the changes in life.

My friend Brett led a grief seminar at our church a few years ago. I pulled out those notes to think through the loss of a friend. One of the key questions a person would need to answer in order to continue to work through the experience of grieving struck me. "What does this mean in my life?" There is a wide range of issues that accompany the consideration of this question. At the very least it means things have changed. I will have to make adjustments - to my thinking about life, friends, the future, health, family and on and on.

Too many times we think there is a prescribed period of time that will "heal all wounds." Time does not heal. Time gives us space and permission to continue to the other side. The other side does not mean forgetting. It does not mean the end of hurt and pain. Instead, the other side means a coming to grips with the answers to important questions raised by the experience. Time helps us to adjust.

We would do well to remember the amount of time one needs will vary from person to person. Continuing to answer the important questions together - as family and friends - will help us find strength in the relationships with which God blesses us. We need each other.