Everything flows, nothing stands still

This idea is attributed to the Greek philosopher Heraclitus, but I expect the concept has been around since humans first observed the world around them.  The world is in constant change.

Change occurs on all scales - from the grand, cosmic scale of a star collapsing and then exploding in a supernova, to the daily, incremental changes in the cells of our bodies as we grow, and then age.

Change happens in physical objects, as the waves of the ocean erode the shore, and it happens to conceptual things, like art, music, and language.  Some changes are directional - a rocky shore can only erode once, while others have a clear periodicity - like the changes in tides or seasons caused by orbiting objects.

At a certain point, early in the fall, the earth has moved to the point in its orbit where the dawn comes later, and it is still dark during my early morning walks.  Then, if the sky is clear, I can see the constellation Orion high up in the sky, a bit to the south.  I marvel at the light that has traveled so many years to reach this spot - right where my eyes are.  Of course, there's a whole field of light radiating out from the stars, filling space with photons.  At any given moment, some of them strike my retinas, and my mind processes that as the light from a star.

It's also interesting to read about and contemplate how humans, from different cultures and time periods around the world, have seen light from these same stars - an earlier point in the stream of photons that has filled space for millions of years - recognized the pattern of light as a symbol, and created meaning for their culture.  I find it very interesting that the constellation has been associated with a hunter, or hunting, in many separate cultures in both the new and old worlds.

Change is constant, but it isn't always taking us from the familiar to the unfamiliar. One consequence of the changing seasons is that I get to reconnect with the experience of Orion, as I have now for several cycles around the sun.  So while the change is taking me away from some experiences, it returns me to another one that is familiar, and anticipated when I step out into the dark early morning.

Change is constant... expect it!