A threshold is crossed: we go from child to adult, from scarcity to abundance, from ignorance to knowledge; matter changes from liquid to gas, from raw to cooked, etc.. Between the two, it is the transition. It evokes a state of temporary instability between two identified states. We give it different names: adolescence, development, learning, boiling, cooking, etc. They are often unavoidable: biologically programmed, statistically probable, mechanically predictable. When the reserves are exhausted or the limit is exceeded, something must change. Badly assumed transitions are called crisis, confusion, stagnation, gangrene; well controlled we will speak of change, transformation, metamorphosis, rebirth...
From one human state to another, the state of mind also transforms; the level of responsibility changes. From student to worker, from employee to entrepreneur or retiree, from performer to leader, from lover to parent, from companion to leader, from chorister to soloist, from coward to adventurer, from neophyte to expert, from victim to resister...in all cases the transformation mobilizes intensely. The transition is all the better if there is preparation and maturation, even if sometimes it is necessary to mature quickly. We understand more and more the importance of accompaniment in these key moments.
The final state is not necessarily worse or better than before, it is mostly different. Happiness is a consideration relative to perceived progress; the same conditions provide a distinct level of satisfaction for everyone.
Socially, we are entering a transition. We will have to change our lifestyles. It means moving from a mentality of scarcity and accumulation to one of abundance and sharing, from an atmosphere of fear to one of confidence and assurance, from a school of rules and obligations to one where responsibility is shared, where flexibility replaces rigidity, whether administrative or ideological. We have the opportunity to replace a presumed loss with gains in pleasure, pride, relationships...
Denys Lamontagne - [email protected]
Illustration: Debi Brady- Pixabay
