“Fall reminds you there is beauty in letting things go.” I came across this message one day recently as I was daydreaming while looking out the window right above my desk. It was just a simple saying on the sign outside of The Spot, but it got me thinking. Change is all around us and not just in the leaves.

When it comes to change, I’m not a fan. I’m the kind of person who likes consistency. A lot of change at once can be quite overwhelming. So when something I’m happy or comfortable with begins to disappear, I get a little anxious. Even just one change can set me off if it’s big enough. But I’m trying to learn to let things go and to enjoy the littler things, because if there is one thing I’ve found to be truly consistent in life, it’s change.

Don’t get me wrong, change can be a good thing. You got a new job—that’s awesome. You’re switching schools to pursue something else—great. Change can be exciting and bring happiness, but it can be equally as painful: moving to a new town, losing someone you love, having to restart your life. These can be exhausting and adapting takes time.

But big changes are on life’s agenda for all of us; it’s inevitable.

For those of us working on earning a degree, big changes are coming sooner than we think. We’ve moved out of our home towns, came to a new place surrounded by new people and have adjusted accordingly. We’ve found our place and our people in this town and gotten comfortable with life once again. Once we get that degree we get to do it all again. Graduation means job hunting, building your resume and figuring out what your next step in life is and where it will take you. The thought is both exciting and scary.

I think our 20s especially will be filled with the most change we’ll have to endure in our lives. It’s through these years that we figure out who we are and where we’re going, so we better get comfortable with all that’s coming. Learning to embrace this, instead of fearing it, is something I’m still working on, but I’m finding comfort in the little stuff.

There is happiness found in the warmth of the sun as its rays stretch upon your shoulders, a Saturday road trip exploring the Upper Peninsula with your pals or a hug from someone you love. These small moments are still fleeting, but relishing in them when they come makes life’s changes a bit more bearable. After all, we wouldn’t know heaven if there wasn’t any hell.

If life starts changing and you’re just not ready for it (who ever is?), keep in mind nothing in life is permanent. The good stuff comes, the good stuff goes, but the bad does just the same.

Remember it’s the little things that brighten a day.

So savor the smell of a pot of coffee freshly brewed in the morning. Enjoy a cold beer after a particularly long day and be content with a morning spent waking up slowly.

Like The Spot sign reads today, “Enjoy the fall leaves before the fall ‘leaves.’”