I got some news this week about a change at work. Without getting into too much detail, it’s a change that I knew might be coming, and I fought it all the way, but the fight is over now. The change is happening whether I like it or not. I can’t help but couch this change in terms of loss. I had a better situation; now I will have a worse one. That’s loss.

But I’m no stranger to change, good or bad, and I’ve learned how to get through losses, even minor ones. I have to grieve the path I’d hoped for in order to set my feet on the new path.

That means going through stages. I don’t really buy into the official “5 stages of grief,” because I don’t think grief is linear. But denial and anger are in my mix, as are sadness, anxiety and reflection.

I find it easier to think of change in these terms. Somehow, it helps me digest the loss more easily if I know I have to grieve the alternate path.

My feet will be on that new path soon.