Everything can change in one instant

I know this intellectually but often, as I think we all do, I need to re-experience something to remember the lesson.

Everything can change in one instant. You get that call and are told you won the lottery; you got your dream job; landed that big client or account; your loved one has cancer; you just got hit by a car or given news that you will never walk again. It can be both good or bad news, but things can change at the turn of a dime.

A few years ago, I saw a little boy playing near the sidewalk with his mom. Within seconds, a car had run over the little boys’ foot and it went from a moment of calm and play, to a moment of chaos and pain. I witnessed then, how everything could change in one second. I don’t know how serious the accident was (as in, will the boy be in cast, will he walk again?). But it was a reminder that one moment, everything can be a certain way, and in another, it can quickly and unexpectedly change.

I don’t take my walks with my labradoodle Chloe for granted, or her health, and our time together. She is currently healthy, happy, and always wagging her tail. A couple of years ago, I had that taken away from me in an instant when one day during our walk, her back legs collapsed and she wasn’t able to stand. She ended up staying overnight at a veterinary hospital and for a few days, we weren’t sure if it was permanent, or how serious it was. Luckily for me it wasn’t permanent or serious, and she has returned to her healthy and joyful self. But I don’t take that for granted. I didn’t realize how quickly I fell apart at the possibility of her leaving this world so soon. Every single walk, cuddle and day with her, I cherish because I know in one single minute, that could change.

I experienced that again last night when I texted a friend and she asked me if I had heard the news; one of our mutual friends has cancer. I was in shock, and am still trying to fully process the implications of it. We can be perfectly healthy and happy one moment, and have that change (at least in our mind and perception) in the next. This friend is taking this new chapter of his life in stride, with such grace and a Zen attitude. He is taking it day by day, being logical about the steps needed to the taken, while being stoic on what will happen. It reminds me of Byron Katie’s outlook on life, and accepting things as they are. (Her book by the way, if it resonates, is worth reading and exploring. But it may ruffle feathers, be warned.)

His news is serving as a reminder that everything can change in an instant. If it’s bad, this too shall pass. If it’s good, this too shall pass. But let us be present, live in the now because we don’t know what is coming around the corner. Everything can and will change in that one instant. It can be in the form of news, or a physical incident, but we cannot predict the future and we must be aware that everything can change in the blink of an eye.