On Change
Time is a measure of change. If nothing changes from one moment to the next, can it be said that time has passed? Or, perhaps, change is the only method we have to perceive the passage of time. In either case, the two are intricately woven together- with no time, change is impossible, and with no change, time becomes irrelevant. This alone can generate much debate, but that is not why this is here.
However it may exist, change is very real, so much so that the oxymoron "constantly changing" can be used and have a meaning not cancelled by itself. It is thus ironic that we humans so crave a stable situation- a period of time when change is low. The greatest irony of this is that the state of complete stability is not one that any person normally desires- this state of perfect unchanging stability is known as "dead". Death is the final change anyone will undergo.
But we do not all desire death, so we accept a certain level of change. This is healthy- at some levels, change will strengthen muscle and bone, sharpen wit, and prime the mind. However, what happens when change exceeds our ability to manage it? Muscles break, bones shatter, and the mind can be driven to madness. The level of change that can be endured before damage occurs can be measured in myriad ways, and in an incredible display, sometimes a change too great can be blunted into a later effect, distributing the change over a greater time and thus letting one cope without breaking.
In the end, the ones who can most manage change end up as either the best or the worst of us- excessive change drives one to the extremes, though the direction cannot be known. And thus lies a quandary- when faced with massive change, do we resist, or go with it? Will it break us, or strengthen us? Such things are easily deduced with hindsight but going in to face such change, there is only one thing for certain- it will hurt. However, sometimes, the pain is nothing compared to what may be lost- or, if we find the strength, what may be gained.