Passages-Second Chapter

Jacob Sutton
Dr. Mirskin

"What I'm saying is, we must be willing to change chairs if we want to grow" (51, Sheehy)

While reading the second chapter of this book, I was immediately struck by this quote.  I must have read it at least ten times before moving on to the rest of the chapter.  Sheehy talks a lot about growing emotionally and socially from obstacles that one must encounter to overcome different passages in their lives.  And this is exactly how we overcome those obstacles.  It sounds corny and silly to say but to grow from challenges we face, we need to challenge ourselves and our ways of thinking.  Transitioning from a more cushioned chair to a wooden chair represents you going through your obstacle, but how your chair responds to you is HOW you have grown.  If you sit on the new and wooden chair just like you've sat on the other one, you have reevaluated your situation at hand successfully.  If your chair wobbles but stays up, you have gone through a lot to face your challenge.  If your wooden chair falls apart, you have ran away from your problems instead of facing them head on.

I have definitely struggled with finding my balance on a harder chair.  I have had times where my chair has wobbled but stayed up, and I have had times where I have strayed from the dilemmas that I face, and my chair has fallen down.  But I have learned from my mistakes, and I realize that it is how you stay on the chair the determines how you overcome your passage. 

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