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Change is one of the few things that can mean both good and bad. I think it depends on how much control we have over the change. If we choose it, there can still be fear but we have only ourselves to blame so it's easier somehow. When change is forced upon you, like somebody leaves or you lose your job or the government takes your house away(my case), it can leave us stunned and searching for reasons why this has happened to us. Why me?

The city I live in has experienced three major earthquakes and over 8000 aftershocks in the past 12 months. Many,many buildings, businesses, shops and homes have been destroyed in the quakes. Lives have been lost. My home survived the earthquakes only to be 'red zoned' by the government because the land it is built on has suffered major ground liquefaction and slippage. We live by a beautiful river. But only for another 5 weeks and then we must leave. We don't want to go.

It has me thinking about change and how sometimes it is forced upon us. I cannot change the outcome, just my response to it. I wept a bit, probably will again. We have all cried for our loss. But then we just got going, started looking at other houses -every weekend! I started to really enjoy it. Always comparing them to our own house, which is really beautiful and (was) in a lovely spot with native birds and swans at the bottom of the long drive. Paradise! It's a paradise we worked very hard for, having done a lot of the renovation ourselves.

But this change is nobody's fault; there is no-one to be angry at. Nature flexed her muscles and the ground shook.Liquefaction occurs when the ground shakes so violently that the particles of soil, sand and water that make up the ground all fly apart -they separate.The water and silt rise to the top, creating an unholy mess of sludge over everything. Cars sunk into it up to their roof. People fell in holes over their heads.Houses sunk into it so the windows were at ground level.

It's Spring now.There will be a new chapter. Yes, it might keep shaking but flowers don't care, they are coming up anyway!

Life is a wheel, always turning. If you feel stuck-give the wheel a little push. You may be surprised where you roll to.