Change

Amina Mohammed
By Amina Mohammed ’24, nursing major and the first Youth Poet Laureate of Worcester, Massachusetts

It is the only constant in life
It is the most undeniable factor that we can hold self evident
In fact I tell you today that we can’t live without it
So if all this is true, why are we so afraid of it?
Why is it that change is the most painful to the human mind?
I mean just the thought of it puts us all on the edge of our seats.
The name change itself sends sharp blistering shock waves throughout our bodies
It creates the oldest and strongest emotion of mankind ... fear
Fear of what ifs
We tell ourselves what if everything doesn’t go as planned
What if the surgery or treatment doesn’t go as planned or goes left
What if this marriage doesn’t work out
What if I’m not ready to be a mother
What if I’m not ready for this new job position
You see we’re afraid of giving up the ideal norms
We tend to like things just the way they are
Never really giving ourselves the opportunity to expand out of our compacted and suffocating bubbles
But what we fail to realize is that progress is impossible without change
We fail to realize that any change even a change for the better will always be accompanied by discomfort
That change is not a threat but actually an opportunity
An opportunity to expand your way thinking
An opportunity to see the world for what it truly is
An opportunity to better ourselves in the most productive and proficient way
You see change forces us to realize that our present situation is not and can never be our final destination
I mean no roller coaster just stops at its peak, no
It continues on
It keeps on moving and pushing through different loops and twists until it gets to its final destination
You see that is how life is
There are going to be tons of loops and twists throughout this funny thing we call life
But you see what makes us who we are is our ability to accept and adapt to the changes
Our ability to keep on moving past the peak
Because that is what is unique about each of us here today
So don’t be afraid of change
But instead embrace and love every aspect of it
Now I’m no preacher or motivational speaker
But I am a human being that has been through it
Just like you and the person sitting next to you
A human that has spent half of her teenage life trying to fight off this crazy thing called change
You see there is no beating it
It will happen so relax and take it one day at a time
And like my brother always says
You’ll be aight!