When you least expect it, the tide can change — in either direction.

One moment it all seems so daunting; it all seems so endless. There’s a mountain before you — maybe even an entire range — and you wonder how you’ll ever move it.

Truth: It’s not meant to be moved.

It’s there to challenge you. And if not to challenge, to teach. If not to teach, to simply make you take pause.

Maybe the pause is literally to make you slow down. Maybe it’s meant to cause inward reflection. Maybe it’s intended to open your eyes as to how good you really have it. If you want to focus on the obstacles, go right ahead. But what about your cheering section in the stands? Don’t forget about them.

The good thing about a mountain is that, in time, it gives way to calm; calm creates rest. Every season comes to an end; every storm passes.

Every burden is lifted, every worry dissolved. Every ounce of desperation is released, every neverending list does, in fact, come to a close.

Some say that it’s not the destination, it’s the journey. I agree. You may not get to that place you see so clearly in your mind’s eye, but maybe you were meant to make a difference along the way. This is where the road of life comes into play.

Along it, we can do any number of things: speed, careen out of control, motor along politely, be helpful and give directions, wreck, be filled with rage, obey the rules or even pull over for a spell.

The choice is ours. Every day.

Tonight, for events that always have meaning and lessons always there to be learned, for the changing tide that’s on its own schedule and not ours, I am thankful. We may get caught up in the chaos, but everything is for a reason.