Jun 6

The Dance of Change: 15 Quotes to Help You Embrace the Uncertainty

It’s been quiet here in my virtual home – a reflection of more struggle and uncertainty that has come my way. I’m beginning to sound like a broken record, but I think it’s important to say something – anything – rather than nothing. So here I go. I’m okay and I’m going to be okay. It’s strange to know that with such certainty when the situation I’m currently in would have broken me apart in the past. I have become so resilient which is ironic because I thought I was already pretty resilient – but I suppose you never really know your true strength until it is put to the test. I know I’m enough even though my “enough” isn’t their “enough” in my current situation. I apologize for being so vague, but something is better than nothing.

I won’t ramble on too much more because a) I know you’re not here for the Carolyn Soap Opera … b) what I want to say is not fully known to me – and I want to share knowledge with you, not just personal feelings … and c) I want to open up to you about what I’m saying between the lines – what has this struggle been about? And I know that time is coming soon.

In the meantime, I want to share some quotes I’ve been collecting recently on change and uncertainty. Hopefully, for those of you who may be living between the lines, some of these words will resonate with you.

Dancing at the Edge of the Sea

The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance. – Alan Watts

You have to fight a battle more than once to win it. – Margaret Thatcher

When you come to the edge of all the light you have, and must take a step into the darkness of the unknown, believe that one of two things will happen. Either there will be something solid for you to stand on or you will be taught how to fly. – Patrick Overton

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ – Eleanor Roosevelt

There’s a world of difference between truth and facts. Facts can obscure the truth. – Maya Angelou

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex… It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction. – Albert Einstein

So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life’s a beautiful thing and there’s so much to smile about. – Marilyn Monroe

You have to accept whatever comes and the only important thing is that you meet it with courage and with the best that you have to give. – Eleanor Roosevelt

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. – Mark Twain

I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a bitch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass. –Maya Angelou

If we don’t change, we don’t grow. If we don’t grow, we aren’t really living. – Gail Sheehy

We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. – Harrison Ford

Without change, something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken. – Frank Herbert

We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated. – Maya Angelou

Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts. – Arnold Bennett

Do you have any favorite quotes or words of wisdom? Let’s dance together.

image: lucy snowe {etsy | blog}

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Posted in: Authenticity, Defeated, Overwhelmed, Personal, When You Feel

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{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }

An June 6, 2011 at 3:37 PM

Hi Carolyn – I saw this quote twice over the weekend in totally unrelated contexts, once as a quote by Nelson Mandela, once as a quote by Marianne Williamson (when I looked it up, this quote apparently is often attributed to Nelson Mandela but is originally from Marianne Williamson). I love this quote, maybe it will resonate with you as well. Take care!
xo
An

““The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

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Carolyn June 6, 2011 at 4:40 PM

I love this quote, An, thank you so much for sharing it with me. I’m going to put it on a little post-it note on my inspiration board :).

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Ben June 6, 2011 at 3:54 PM

What a beautiful post filled with such encouraging words in such a time of uncertainty.

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Carolyn June 6, 2011 at 4:41 PM

thank you, ben. so much uncertainty and of course, i’m scared… but trying to stay strong at the same time.

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Terri Conrad June 6, 2011 at 5:19 PM

hello Carolyn,

perseverance & resilience are cornerstones of my life – with a very healthy dose of faith -
each
and
every
day.
Know that you are not alone in your journey. May God be your dance partner during this time of uncertainty and change.
Terri Conrad
Terri Conrad Designs

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Carolyn June 6, 2011 at 6:30 PM

Thank you, Terri — perseverance and resilience are cornerstones of my life as well.

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Alex Blackwell | The BridgeMaker June 6, 2011 at 6:28 PM

Hang in there Carolyn and thanks for sharing these quotes. I hope they provide strength for you, too.

Alex

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Carolyn June 6, 2011 at 6:29 PM

Thank you so much, Alex. I really appreciate your kind words.

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nancy June 6, 2011 at 10:04 PM

“If you’re going through hell, keep going” Winston Churchill

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Carolyn June 7, 2011 at 4:16 PM

great quote! simple yet very powerful :)

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Robin June 6, 2011 at 10:16 PM

You know that darn old saying that ‘everything happens for the best’? I can tell you that I totally loathe that expression – until, amazingly, it comes true! There really is a ‘better’ floating around out there waiting just for you!

(Having the patience to wait for the good stuff is the awful part. I’m not so talented in that regard.)

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Carolyn June 7, 2011 at 4:18 PM

oh so true, robin. i wish we could skip all of the crazy mind games and realize that everything does happen for a reason. walking the talk is the difficult part!

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Darnita June 7, 2011 at 3:04 PM

Here’s a great quote that I certainly keep close to me. Hope it resonates with you as well.

“Faith is not simply a patience that passively suffers until the storm is past. Rather, it is a spirit that bears things – with resignations, yes, but above all, with blazing, serene hope. ” –Corazon Aquino

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Carolyn June 7, 2011 at 4:09 PM

I love that quote, Darnita. Thank you so much for sharing it – definitely resonates with me and I’m sure many others as well.

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Lolly June 7, 2011 at 3:22 PM

Thank you so much for this post, I really needed it! Going through a lot right now, some may call it a “quarter-life crisis” and I am for sure battling a lot of uncertainty.

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Carolyn June 7, 2011 at 4:14 PM

I’m so happy that this post helped an itty bit for you — for some reason quotes tend to be my go-to source for hope and inspiration when I need it the most. It’s nice to put words to what you’re feeling and realize that others have gone through this uncertainty as well — the quotes are like little messages from others. Oh goodness I’m getting sappy today! I’m in the same crisis mode but it happened a bit abruptly so I’m trying to recalibrate — but definitely know you are not alone in this “crisis” and just recognizing this period for what it is … is incredibly empowering.

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Ann Becker-Schutte June 7, 2011 at 11:00 PM

Carolyn,

I’ve collected quotes since high school, and I really appreciated this group. As a reader and a blogger, I’m glad that you’re taking the time to meet your own needs!

Warmly,
Ann

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Sylvia Hall June 7, 2011 at 11:01 PM

I’m a total quote nerd and I love all these! I sprinkle quotes all over my blog. What a beautiful collection. Thanks for sharing!

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Carolyn June 7, 2011 at 11:11 PM

oh i love quote nerds (myself being one as well!) — can’t wait to spend time looking at your beautiful collection :)

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Anand June 8, 2011 at 4:51 PM

Here are two brief but powerful comicbook quotes -

“There’s always a way.” – Kal-El/Superman

“Don’t forget.Survive. ” Bruce Wayne/Batman

Whatever your crisis may be, hope you get through and emerge stronger – as I believe you will.

Live Long and Prosper :)

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Jadyn June 9, 2011 at 10:27 PM

Thanks for sharing in the midst of uncertainty and struggle, Carolyn. Always lovely to read your thoughts on where you’re at, there is such a graciousness about you even as you’re going through hard time.

I love the quotes you shared, here’s one that I love:

“A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”
Maya Angelou.

Good luck with whatever it is you’re facing – hold on to that certainty that things will be okay for you. xx

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Garrett June 10, 2011 at 8:27 PM

Beautiful list, Carolyn, I admire you, one thing and then another, isn’t it? One of my favorite quotes: “Victory won’t come

to me unless I go
to it;

….

What is there

like fortitude! What sap
went through that little thread
to make the cherry red!”

Marianne Moore, Nevertheless
http://rinabeana.com/poemoftheday/index.php/2009/03/23/nevertheless-by-marianne-moore/

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Sharon Fielding June 24, 2011 at 11:30 PM

“There are a lot of lies going around… and half of them are true.” – Winston Churchill

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Love Out Loud July 5, 2011 at 3:30 AM

A wonderful collection of inspiring quotes! Thank you so much for sharing!

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Joy July 7, 2011 at 7:32 PM

I love this quote:

“Clever men are good, but they are not the best” Thomas Carlyle.

Great blog!!

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Carolyn July 7, 2011 at 7:37 PM

Thank you, Joy!

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Kristen July 11, 2011 at 12:28 PM

Even though your comments about your current situation are vague, I have a feeling we are going through the exact same thing.

Here are my recent inspirational quotes that I have hanging in my office for the rough times.

“Live in this moment, in the not knowing, and have faith that it is working out for the best.”

“You get in life what you have the courage to ask for.”

And sometimes, I just need this reminder…

“You Can Do This.”

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Kristen July 11, 2011 at 12:32 PM

Forgot this last one!

“Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living.”

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Chasity July 13, 2011 at 10:45 PM

“It’s not so much that we’re afraid of change or so in love with the old ways, but it’s that place in between that we fear… It’s like being between trapezes. It’s Linus when his blanket is in the dryer. There’s nothing to hold on to.”

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Lolly July 15, 2011 at 2:47 PM

These quotes are amazing. Thank you for sharing!

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Nicole August 3, 2011 at 1:39 PM

Thank you for these, Carolyn!

Also, where is the image from? I would love to have something like it framed, in my study.

Best,
Nicole

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Carolyn August 3, 2011 at 1:42 PM

Thank you, Nicole! The image is by lucy snowe. There should be a link at the bottom of the post :).

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