Timing is everything. How do we know when it's time to change? Major life and professional changes, relocation, and vocational shifts require seasoned discernment for knowing just when the time is right to make a move. Too abrupt a change can endanger the whole family/organization/unit/community. And stalling too long - the result of inertia - can stultify and sometimes eradicate potential for growth, a return to homeostasis and sustained resilience. Getting it right is often a challenge.
The chameleon does it pretty well. How? "The chameleon's colour state at any given time is controlled by a complex interaction of hormones, temperature, and the animal's autonomic nervous system. Colour change is determined by such environmental factors as light and temperature as well as by emotions - such as fright and the emotions associated with victory or defeat in battle with another chameleon." https://www.britannica.com/story/how-do-chameleons-change-colour#:~:text=Colour%20change%20is%20determined%20by,cream%2C%20or%20dark%20brown%20coloration.
In the natural world, if a species cannot master the art of timing, it fails to thrive in the wider eco-system. Germinating, rooting, growing, leafing, budding, fruiting, mating, nesting, weaning, ripening, and dying back are all part of a perfectly timed ballet of cyclic life. The thriving microcosm of a healthy eco-system is synchronized to the rotation of the biosphere around a star and its proximity to sunlight, receptivity to healthy water, air quality, and soil nutrients, protection from predators and disease in the available habitat, possibility for reproduction, and opportunities for healthy symbiosis with other members of the species, and inter-species diversification. The whole system works as one, so for the whole to thrive, the timing for each species' needs and maximized contributions must be perfect to accommodate a balanced, calibrated dance. Timing is everything.
Take the avocado, for example. Those who love its taste and texture know that timing is crucial for its optimum benefits for culinary enjoyment and health. Is it ready yet? If it's hard to the touch, doesn't give at all when slightly squeezed, it's not ready. Wait. Wait. Not ready. Not ready. Then, when it becomes slightly pliable, and yields to a gentle squeeze, it's ready. NOW! Eat it now! Otherwise, it becomes over-ripe and very quickly begins decaying in its own skin. https://loveonetoday.com/how-to/pick-buy-fresh-avocados/
When clients ask me if it's the right time to make a move, whether they are considering a relocation, job change, vocation change, relationship change, health/lifestyle change, or other significant change, I like to help them observe Nature to learn the art of timing, among other things.
If it's a relocation move that you've been considering because it reflects a life/family dynamic or professional change, yes, it's probably time. Waiting for when it's "perfect" means you're not moving. You're not ready. Adaptation requires yielding, compromising, adapting. Healthy habitat/home needs to reflect the needs of the current denizens, whether it's a seedling struggling to unfurl from its tender shell in the softening spring soil, or a nest that no longer accommodates the fledglings. Staying somewhere too long because it was once really perfect for everyone, but now is not healthy for most or all of the inhabitants is the very definition of waiting too long. If inertia is your issue, reach out. I'll be happy to help you find a new home that reflects your present state of life, and fits your current loves/passions/hopes/dreams. I'll also be happy to find a family who needs your old home to accommodate their desire for growth and healthy living.
If it's a different kind of change that is coming - whether you are choosing it or it is choosing you - timing is also crucial. Nature provides the best example of how to make a move at the right time. This is an essential skill for surviving and thriving among the wider "We" of the eco-system. And you can learn it if you practice the art of biomimicry: imitating Nature to address life's seemingly intractable challenges.
How does Nature perfect its own timing? By constant awareness of every living being in its purview! Without devoted vigilance, opportunities for nourishment and growth, encroaching dangers or disease, or generative activities are missed. Perception, integration, and adaptation are key. The moment is right when the other species in the eco-system are all adapting, morphing, and "moving"/changing together. Notice the seasonal shifts. Nature "knows" when Earth's rotation requires change. It's moving to the music of the spheres, swaying to the rhythm of light, darkness, temperature, moisture, and decay.
So, timing means learning a dynamic rhythm, and moving in time. Gotta dance!
Spring would not happen without this calibrated dance, nor would its riot of color, aroma, sound, and beauty inaugurate summer's splendor. Starlings would not coalesce in their balletic murmurations. Geese, monarchs, salmon, and cranes would not employ their homing compass. Autumn's spectacular visual and aromatic feast would not celebrate the art of dying. And winter's miraculous cocooning would not anoint the stillness and dormancy required for new life to appear in the spring. It is truly all about the timing, as dancing generally is.
If you are unsure about timing, if your dancing is a bit awkward or "off," take your good self outside for some nature therapy. Open your ears. Soften your gaze. Lift your nose to the magnificent Earthy fragrance, embracing the beauty of creation and tasting its generous fruits. Learn from what you sense all around and within you about when the time is ripe. If you need help listening, reach out. We'll practice together. If moving is on your horizon, timing is everything. Let's dance!
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