I confess. For this week's a2z4u&me post I had to revert to flipping through the "V" section for the Webster's New World Pocket Dictionary on my desk. Yep. I ran out of steam, or juice, or creative Viagra, or whatever it is that keeps us writers going, this week. In fact, my only personal blog post last week was for this meme. Ouch. I feel like a slacker.

My eyes scanned the words... variable, vermouth, vicissitude.
Huh? What the heck is vicissitude?

I'm not sure what kind of a nerd gets a rush out of stumbling across an unfamiliar word in the dictionary, but whatever kind of nerd it is, I'm it. Finding a new, interesting word is almost as good as finding a few extra bucks in my checking account or discovering a brand new Ann Taylor jacket in my size and preferred color at Goodwill on half-price. (Yes, that makes me incredibly cheap: I look for the sale tags at Goodwill.) 

So what is vicissitude? According to my handy pocket dictionary (a Christmas gift from one of my kids) it's "any of one's ups and downs; change."

I don't know about you, but definitions like that are like having "just a taste" of my husband's dessert at the company Christmas dinner ... unsatisfying. So I looked vicissitude up on www.dictionary.com (a favorite site).


Oh my. That's me. That's where I'm at right now ... if I took a picture of myself I could stamp VICISSITUDE on it with one of those big, red rubber stamps no one but government officials use anymore.

Don't get me wrong, I LIKE change. I rearrange my furniture seasonally, revamp my wardrobe as often as I can make the 100-mile one-way trek to the nearest mall Goodwill, and change my hairstyle as quickly as it will grow. But these changes, I don't know... physical, mental, emotional, familial, relational, spiritual, financial... name it, it's in a state of flux (another way to say "transition"). Or mutation. Is that what's happening? Am I mutating? 

Years ago, when my mom was going through menopause, she described it as "puberty in reverse." I think I might finally understand what she meant. Hopefully, this too shall pass... SOON.

How do YOU handle change?

For a selection of much more inspiring posts about the letter "V," check out the following: