The Times They Are A-Changing

“Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.”

--Bob Dylan

This song came up on a playlist I found on Spotify that included the songs that were popular in any given year. I chose 1964 because it’s the year I was born. Also, the last half of the 1960s fascinates me because while it was a tumultuous period in history, in so many ways, it’s also a period where my memories may or may not be accurate. It’s like I have to know what was really going on then. My parents are no longer here to tell me about what it was like having two small children toddling around while world leaders were being shot on a regular basis, some students had to go to school with armed guards around them, and, to make it interesting, astronauts were hopping around on the moon.

Change can be scary. The character of Sheldon on the show “The Big Bang Theory” is an extreme example of someone resistant to change, but it’s probably fair to say we all have a little Sheldon in us. We have our favorite spots in our favorite places, we delight in the familiarity of having a coffee, or a sandwich made just the way we like it, every time. How many of us buy the same flavor of yogurt every week? The same kind of chips or the same brand of cereal? Sure, that strawberry kiwi flavor is excellent, but would a couple of containers of peach mango kill you? So maybe you like those three little hyperactive guys on the Rice Krispie box, but take a step outside your comfort zone and have a bowl of corn flakes once in a while. Don’t be a chicken; buy the rippled chips instead of the same old kettle cooked and take a walk on the wild side.

OK, enough about the groceries, because Bob Dylan wasn’t talking about your weekly trip to Stop and Shop when he sang this song. He was saying that despite what side we stood on, we were all dangerously close to the edge of a massive leap into a stormy sea of the unknown. Sink or swim? Hmmm…sounds like a great book title…but I digress. While it may not be the 1960s anymore, it’s universally true that in any decade, year, month or week, the times are always a-changin. We don’t even have to look at the national or world stage to see it either. Been a busy week or two in local politics, hasn’t it? While it has to be difficult for those right in the thick of it, some of it had to happen. Change is a critical part of growth, and especially when it comes to educating our children, growth is essential, even when it hurts.

Change doesn’t have to be quite as earth-shattering as what was happening when Dylan sang about it though. Every day we can look for what isn’t working in our own small bubble, whether it’s a job, a home, or just a pair of shoes and shake it up. Making the world a better place doesn’t just happen with fire hoses and freedom marches, it can be as simple as volunteering for a cause you believe in, reading a book by an author you never heard of, or sitting across from someone you have nothing in common with and hearing them out. Seriously, listening to another side of an issue has literally no downside. What’s the worst that could happen, you might learn something? G-d forbid some new ideas creep into your life, anything but that!

Sarcasm aside, it’s important to remember that what’s happening now in politics, locally and otherwise, is what is supposed to happen. Dylan warns “Come senators, congressmen/Please heed the call/Don't stand in the doorway/Don't block up the hall,” but it’s good advice for all of us, not just those in Washington. He was referring to the relevant events of those turbulent years, but let’s remember, the man won a Nobel Prize. He’s not your average 60’s hippie. It must have freaked him out a little too since it took him six months to accept it. Change is all around us, so we should probably get used to it and at least try to ensure that when it does come to us, it moves us forward and makes us better.