Change

One gets accustomed
To living a certain way.
Tried and tested routines,
But nothing stays constant.

Some changes are unexpected
And happen swiftly,
Small alterations
That are either absorbed with little effort
Or that send you into a minor panic
But are soon forgotten.

Or the bolts out of the blue,
Life-altering events that cannot be predicted,
Only weathered,
What some would call "character building"

Then there's slow changes -
Friends growing apart,
Personality development -
That aren't immediately noticeable
But months down the line
You look back and don't recognise
Who you used to be.

There are also the inevitable,
The milestones of growing up -
Changing schools,
Leaving home -
They're the scary ones
Until they happen.
You soon adjust
And wonder why you spent so long worrying.

It doesn't mean you learn for next time.