If you’ve ever been to Ireland, you’ve seen many churchyards like this one. I snapped this picture on a trip in 2015, then used it for a Wednesday blog quote in 2019. Unfortunately, I don’t remember exactly which church this is.

The full quote (not used in the meme) from British politician Harold Wilson reads, “He who rejects change is the architect of decay. The only human institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.”

It’s a timeless message about embracing change in our lives.

August ends today, which means change for most of us. School started for many. Vacations ended. Gone are carefree days without schedules. Some of us will baulk at that. On the other hand, cooler weather is coming, which will be welcomed after this brutally hot summer.

Resisting changes hinders our ability to adapt and grow. We put ourselves on a path of stagnation and decay. We become like the cemetery pictured above.

Change is the natural flow of life. By adapting, we become the architects of our own personal growth.

For me, Harold Wilson’s quote makes the unpleasant changes to come—which are inevitable anyway—more palatable. Who wants to be stagnant and dead like a cemetery?