To Transform or Be Transformed

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.
“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” — J.R.R. Tolkien, “The Fellowship of The Ring”

Transformation is happening. On a scale more massive than anything we’ve experienced in our lifetimes. Happening whether we like it or not.

It feels like everything has changed — because it has! And the new normal is anything but. It’s likely that this will continue to be the case long after the imminent threat of the pandemic has passed.

We will be forever changed individually and collectively by this experience. Previous societal upheavals — 911, the 2008 financial crisis, the technology revolution, xenophobia and the rise of authoritarianism — will pale by comparison.

To transform or be transformed. That is the question.

Transformation — as we are all now learning…all too well…all at once — is painful. It is uncertain, uncomfortable, and deeply unnerving.

Transformation as I have written before is not a linear or predictable process. Transformation is always happening but like the frog in the pot of boiling water, it’s normally a slow, gradual process. A process we’re not always aware of until we have passed through it and are blessed with the gift of hindsight.

It’s something we usually experience on an individual level or at least it feels that way. Individuals undergoing personal transformation — myself included — are often so inwardly focused, so…