This is one of my favorite quotes. The woman who said this was not famous or well known. She was my grandmother. She lived to be 102 years old and was quite active until she broke her leg at the age of 100. As a matter of fact, her face was smooth without wrinkles or worry lines. My grandmother had very little formal education, but she knew quite a bit about life and living. She left nothing when she died except the treasure of her wisdom and experience.
My grandmother’s story is not unlike many other women who were born in the early part of the 20th century. Her father died when she was a child and her mother raised her three daughters on a sharecropper’s sustenance. After my grandmother’s husband died, she left her daughters with their grandmother while she worked as a domestic in order to provide for their care. Everyday life was a struggle by virtue of her being a woman living in an era in which women were not appreciated nor valued.
My grandmother concluded at some point in time that no matter how bad things look, the circumstances will change and change for the better. She created opportunities for good to come to her. She believed and had faith. She ate sweet potatoes and tomatoes daily. She walked everywhere. She also loved her family and laughed heartily. In other words, she had faith, she took care of herself, and she surrounded herself with people who cared about her and her circumstances.
Edna Quinney understood the ebb and flow of life. We experience difficulties and struggles just as we experience joy and satisfaction. While we bask in the joys of life, we should not get weighted down with the struggles. “There’s not an ill wind that doesn’t change” illustrates that life’s circumstances change. The situation that seems impossible and unbearable will eventually ease and become manageable. We need to have faith. We need to take care of ourselves by eating healthily and exercising. We also need to surround ourselves with people who will fill us with laughter. This will help us get through the difficult times.
Change is inevitable. Some circumstances will change suddenly; some will change gradually; and some will flip back and forth. Don’t give up because the “ill” wind will change.