Transition...

tran·si·tion –noun

1.	movement, passage, or change from one position, state, stage, subject, concept, etc., to another; change

The thought of transition has been on my mind the past few weeks. Fall is my absolute favorite season, the beauty of the leaves changing, the hot muggy air moving to cool crisp breeze. Putting away the shorts for sweatpants...and football jerseys. I. LOVE. FALL.

Looking at the definition I like the thought of passage. We pass through all things of life. Sometimes we stop and stay for a long while, and others its a short trip. God uses each stop to mold us and change us, but I think that He uses the actual passage and transition to grow us even more. Transitioning can be from something bad to something good, or something good to something better. Being the maximizer I am, I always try to think of ways to do things better, but sometimes that means I need to admit to the failures of what came before the new ideas. That isn't always easy.

I think the hardest part of transition is the ending. We should strive to end things well. Whether its the end of an era, a job, or a relationship we should strive to do everything in our power to make sure we can't do anything to make the end better. Sadly, even if we do accomplish that the ending can still be messy.

Ever since I was little I have always been horrible with goodbyes, so having to end relationships is the absolute worst for me! Looking back at the some relationship passages I've been though I see some that were very difficult to end, but now that I have come through the passage and I'm on the other end I see why it needed to happen.

I think about the leaves changing and how beautiful they are...and it makes me wonder why God makes the death of the leaves something so captivating. I think that it might be a way for Him to show us the importance of having a good ending. If you view the leaves as the transitions or passages of our lives the ending is when the leaves change color and fall to the ground, then the winter season of the barren tree is a neutral zone to pray and try to figure out what we can learn from the past, and look to what lies ahead. Finally spring comes and the leaves grow anew and it is time to grow and learn from the new beginning. The transition is complete.

This year I have had a few transitions to grow through, and I know that there are many more to come. Here are to great endings and even better beginnings!!!