Endings and Beginnings

This month I have sung at two funerals. Both times as part of a choir. These two services were very different, but both were very emotional. The first was the funeral of the son of a friend. This young man was the victim of a random, senseless accident. This was a shocking and very painful death. Yet the service was uplifting, an affirmation of his life and an acknowledgement of his family's pain.
The second was for the 90 year old father of a friend. This was a peaceful end, more or less expected, but still not welcome for those who love him. The part of the service we sang for was at the graveside, and what a peaceful and beautiful place and day for it. This was a sad farewell, but not a wrenching one.
These endings are also new beginnings for both families. They have to get used to life now without their loved ones being around. They have gone for their rest, and we believe we will see them by and by when we go to ours, and that we will all have new life one day.
This time of year is also a time of endings and beginnings. All of nature is winding down, waiting for its winter nap, and the new life to come in spring.
At work, we have people leaving, people changing jobs, and new hires coming in.
In my music studies, I have finished the recital pieces, time to move on to new things and maybe some Christmas things in preparation for the next recital.
Our newspaper carrier is quitting after years of loyal and dependable service. Next month a new carrier starts. One wonders if the newspaper will indeed be waiting every day as it has been for so many years.
I guess this all boils down to life being about change. In case you haven't noticed, to live means to change, grow, evolve, become something new, learn something new or die. Even in death, many of us believe that we go on to a new life, to learn even more new things. If we know that life means things change, why then do we resist change so much? We all long for the days of childhood, when our routines seemed written in stone, we KNEW what would happen and when, and there were few if any major bumps in our roads. (At least my childhood was pretty much that way, your mileage will surely vary.)
When we get used to a certain situation, way of doing things, group of people, place, we don't want things to change. We are comfortable. We don't want the discomfort of change.
Yet we often find that the changed situation is better, more interesting, easier to deal with, than the one we clung to so desperately.
I find myself to be resistant to change, but to go with the flow when I must. I am used to it at work, the library world changes constantly. Procedures, shelving locations, call formats, all these change all the time. My personal world, though, I like to have the same because it makes me feel in control of something. This is an illusion, and deep down I know it, but it's my illusion, and I want to keep it.
Just my random thoughts on change.