Writing the title to this blog made me think of the Maroon 5 song. One of the lyrics is "Everyday/With every worthless word we get so far away/The distance between us makes it so hard to stay/Nothing lasts forever but be honest, babe/It hurts, but it may be the only way." The phrase "nothing lasts forever" has always made me feel slightly sad as I've always associated it with the end of good things- lovely vacations, good times, relationships, etc. but perhaps impermanence isn't necessarily the evil thing I've always imagined it to be.
I'm currently reading a book called The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching, by Thich Nhat Hanh and I've reached the discussion about impermanence. Thich Nhat Hanh says: "Understanding impermanence can give us confidence, peace, and joy. Impermanence does not necessarily lead to suffering. Without impermanence, life could not be. Without impermanence, your daughter could not grow up into a beautiful young lady. Without impermanence, oppressive political regimes would never change. We think impermanence makes us suffer...What makes us suffer is wanting things to be permanent when they are not."
Having experienced a range of emotions during this pandemic- I'm sure I'm not the only one- this passage gave me a little peace. Nothing lasts forever, and that includes COVID-19 and some of the crazier things that we have experienced politically and socially. I am still working on managing my attachments, and it is nice to remember that things change and we should spend more time enjoying each moment instead of thinking of what has already passed or what we wish were happening. We live more fully and more peacefully this way and perhaps don't spend as much time mired in fear. Nothing lasts forever, so we can look forward to each changing moment, love deeply in each moment, and just be in each moment.
