Metathesiophobia

We are born with a fear – Fear of unknown. May be that’s why cry as soon as we are born. We are ripped apart from the familiar corners of mother’s womb. But, that’s just a beginning. Going to school, meeting new people, leaving home for higher studies or work, marriage and what not, pushes us out of our comfort zone and challenges to successfully evolve out of it.

They say change is the only constant. We nod and acknowledge that. However, we also harbor a fear for change.

I was no different until I was seven years old. Happy and comfortable in my familiar zone. Loved by my parents, many friends in neighborhood, school close to our home, surrounded by relatives – I couldn’t ask for more.

Happy times never stays. They are like clouds. They keep moving. Now I understand that. But, as a child, it was incomprehensible for me. I was in a fairy land and I was enjoying each moment – Until my father got a transfer!

His transfer notice came in the middle of my academic year. So, he moved first. Later, my mother and I left. From Garden City, we were transported to Steel City. We were moving from the city that offered the best climate to a city famous for its heat; from a city to a small town.

When we reached, it was midafternoon, and dear Sun was dazzling mercilessly. I was sweating profusely and the sunlight was blurring my teary eyes. Our new house was double the size of the house we used to live in. There were lots of free space and sometimes, I used to sit in a corner and cry until my mother affectionately consoled me saying, “Accept the change”. She told me that I can either cry all my life or adapt to the new situation and move on.  She told me that I should be like a chameleon which turns the color of its skin to suit the surrounding. I had not seen a chameleon in my life. So, I didn’t understand what she was saying. So, she also added that I can be a fish which suffers when taken out of water, or be a frog that can live both under water and on land.

Those words had a lasting impact in my mind. I decided to take life as it comes. I made new friends, and started to weave a world of my own in a new land.

I was again happy and celebrating life when my father was transferred to a village! It was less than two years in the Steel City. My mother and I were forced to move to God’s Own Country. We reached our new town, which was smaller than Steel City. The house was smaller than the Garden City house. My father left to the village. I was enrolled in a new school… new language made me feel uncomfortable. The tiny house looked suffocating. Father’s absence was saddening. But, I didn’t cry this time. I took it up as a challenge and decided to taste the fruits that life throws at me – some could be tasty. Some bitten. Some rotten.

My perspective about life changed. Fear of change took a backseat!

PS: This is written as a part of Start A New Life

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