Lately, so many things in my life have drastically changed. Over the past month, I have faced a change in nearly every aspect of my life, and, surprisingly, I was prepared for each and every one of them.

We become so comfortable in our ways, whether we are at home, school or work, that an alteration of any kind automatically means a loss of happiness or stability. That doesn’t have to be the case though.

For example, my freshman year, the orchestra was informed that our beloved middle and high school orchestra teachers Radomski and Levin were retiring. Devastated and heartbroken over the loss of such crucial figures in our academic career, the orchestra started to generate bad attitudes towards whoever they would be sending to replace them. We grew bitter towards the idea of a new orchestra teacher. Soon after, Mr. Wright came into our lives my sophomore year. The change took some warming up to, but, with time, proved to be incredible. Now as a senior, I love orchestra even more than before. Not only am I appreciative of Mr. Wright, but I’m also appreciative of the change itself because it meant I got to sample different teaching styles. That wouldn’t have been possible if the change had not happened.

Flashing forward to my current situation, how I handled the changes really taught me who I am.

To be clear, I wasn’t prepared necessarily for the changes themselves, but I was prepared for change itself. Instead of my typical bad attitude towards changes big and small, I surprised myself, as I was so flexible to all the changes – good and bad. I didn’t even bother to think of the negative effects the changes might have on me or my lifestyle.

Not only did I accept the drastic, maybe not-so-great, changes in my life, I welcomed them. Listen, I know it’s easy to greet the c-word with utter annoyance and bitterness, but it’s what you make it. Somewhere along my journey to get where I am today, I learned that embracing change means I can control how it impacts me. Maybe I didn’t have power over what is happening, but I did have power over my attitude.

Don’t get me wrong, not all change is necessarily helpful, or even good, but take it from me, it’s best to muster up the strength to accept fate and make the very best of it.

If you aren’t experiencing any new change in your life but feel like you’re in a rut of routine and dismal normality, don’t wait for others to change your life for you. Take your life into your own hands and make a change, even if it is small. It could be as simple as spicing up your morning routine or changing up your route to work. Whatever little change you need to feel better, do it. You may discover something new.

Life and the crucial aspects of it are never going to stop changing. Many life-altering changes are still soon-to-come for me, especially including my fellow seniors, but I’m not too worried. I now am confident in myself in how I’m going to handle it.