Some Things are Immutable, Offering us an Anchor in a Sea of Evolving Change
Change. Some support it; others shun it. It’s mostly inevitable in a world that’s evolving faster than we can say our name, whether fashion, technology, relationships, families, behavior, culture, nature, politics, wars, shootings, climate change, weather, pandemic and continuing viruses, our health and so on. There’s no putting a finger in the dyke to try to stop any of these changes.
Yet sometimes we try by changing our eating or exercise habits to be healthier, changing our looks to look younger, reading up on fashion trends to at least stay in step with higher or lower hemlines and heels.
But as we’ve aged, we’ve mastered the lesson of not fighting all things we can’t control. We’ve learned some things never change regardless of time or place, above and beyond the old saying of death and taxes. These constants give us emotional comfort--security, stability and a sense of continuity among the chaos of our daily lives.
Count holidays and how we celebrate them, though even there we might try to change them up (an article in a December 2026 New York Times newspaper article, cleverly suggested how in “To Love the Holidays, Give up Hosting”). We’ve considered doing so or varying our strategy.
Mostly, we see the conditions in our lives as more permanent and predictable, from birth to aging, birds migrating, mathematical formulas, gravity, the speed of light, eating, sleeping (less of it however as we age), social interaction, our routines, the value of pi, flowers blooming and dying, tree leaves changing colors and falling, the sun rising and setting, the seasons if we live in a four-season climate and a family member or several cheering us on—or nagging. We thought we’d add a bit of levity, what we all need when change is afoot.
Speaking of permanence, in a December 16, 2025, edition of Vanity Fair magazine, global editorial director Mark Guiducci relayed a story in an Editor’s Letter that alluded to an interview with Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair. “I noticed a mousetrap in the corner of Blair’s office and was reminded that the rodents are the only truly permanent residents of the White House.” In this case, a change of residence for the rodent would be welcome by many. We wonder if they know a good real estate person, and if not, we’ll provide one.
Change brings with it pros and cons. One change we find disruptive as two technically challenged seniors is an operating system update on our devices. It makes the change; we turn on our device and it’s unrecognizable. There’s a tightness in our throats, a pulling in our chests, we’re challenged to adjust to a new format. So, we eyeball it for a moment, give it a rude little ugh!, and then let it slip into place in our brains gradually over days.
We rationalize it this way: change allows us to learn and grow, is innovative through the discovery of new ideas and approaches and teaches adaptability that can make us stronger in the future. In fact, it’s often better than the old way once we get past fighting the change and processing the alteration. “Hey, the timer on my phone, which looks different, is so much better with the feature to recycle the time if doing a series of exercises. And the camera has so many new features. It will be fun to play around with them.”
Fortunately, amid a whirlwind of change in our world, it’s reassuring to know that certain aspects of our lives won’t change, whether we like them or not, such as the White House rodent with permanent housing, or as Benjamin Franklin said, “…in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Most of us would rather pay taxes than die. So, live in the moment, always pay your taxes and celebrate what you know is coming next, as well as some surprises to keep us all on our toes.