"Changes"

The world changes so rapidly over time, and so must we all. That being said, the past couple years have held enormous changes for me, both as a person on the outside, as well as on the inside. In the past year alone, I have met several people, changed many lives; including my own, seen a bunch of new places, and experienced new challenges. I've faced army basic training, getting married, being a parent, and being stationed far from the home and friends I have known my whole life. I have my days where I miss all of them, but I would not change a single choice for the world, because for the first time, I'm learning new things each day again, and enjoying the changes in scenery and lifestyle. That all being said, I want to reveal a new piece that has been growing the past few months.

"Reflections"

Long ago, a boy once looked into the mirror,
hoping to see his reflection, but when he looked,
he saw that of a young man looking back at him instead.
This greatly troubled the boy and he spoke,
asking the reflection why it was that of a young man,
instead of that of himself.
The reflection replied to the boy,
with the wisdom of only that attained through experience,
"I am you, several years down the road.
You do not yet know of the choices that will lead you here,
but they will lead you to the best days of your life."
With that, the reflection faded, and the boy was staring at himself once more.

Several years later, the young man smiled,
having looked back at who he used to be,
knowing that his past led him to this point, and he was who he wanted to be.
He then pulled out a small mirror that he kept within his uniform, and gazed into it.
He was shocked to see the reflection of a middle aged man,
grizzled and worn out looking, a scar on his cheek and white beginning to show in his hair.
The man spoke to the young soldier, his bitterness burning within the young man's ears.
"Your choices have condemned you to a dark, and lonely road.
The actions you will perform here, today, will seal your fate,
leaving you hollow and bitter like me."
The reflection faded, leaving that of the young man with a troubled expression.

A middle aged man sat alone on his front porch,
grumbling in his bitterness and longing for his former happiness.
It was when he had a sudden impulse to look at his reflection in the nearby mirror,
that he was greeted by the countenance of an elderly man,
Wizened and scarred, seasoned in his age and content.
The elderly man smiled, and spoke to the middle aged man,
"Your bitterness has been a part of you for too long due to decisions that you did not make.
Let it go, and enjoy the good that you do have in your life, for life is too short for one to dwell on the past.
Know that your actions saved lives, protected those you cared for, and you followed your orders.
You served with honor, and once you left service, you had several good things waiting, and that are still waiting."
The vision of the future vanished, and the middle aged man sat alone once more immersed in thought,
before rising and rejoining his family indoors.

An elderly man sat in his chair next to the one that remained unoccupied by his wife,
his now fully grown daughter having been it's most recent occupant until she recently left the house,
rushing off to work in a flurry of youth.
The old man smiled briefly then with a final glance to the chair to his side, promised his wife he would see her again shortly.
With that, he released his dying breath, and let go, rejoining his loved one on the other side.

The story of the boy, the young man, the middle aged man, and the elderly man shows us that life is much to short to hold on to resentment, regrets, and troubles.It teaches us to let go of the things that we hold resentment towards and accept life for what it is, and move on. From cradle to grave, our lives are a series of challenges, and tests that will affect who we are to our core, and should we lose our way, we must remember that life moves on, with or without us, and be content for the time that we do have.

-"Shade"