Embracing change and risk

They say the only thing that doesn’t change is a rock.

Yet in our community, too many treat change like a threat instead of an opportunity. We cling to the familiar (people, policies, traditions) even when it no longer serves us and shy away from risk, even strategic ones that could move us forward.

Whenever I meet someone who wants change but isn’t working toward it, I’m reminded of Rudyard Kipling’s words in If:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss ...

That’s what true change requires: courage.

The willingness to take calculated risks. To lose, adjust, and try again without letting fear paralyze us. It’s the kind of mindset that builds stronger communities and reshapes nations.

Now imagine the Virgin Islands if we embraced risk, not recklessly, but with vision.

Imagine if the WAPA board’s 1975 exploration of wind energy had led to real investment.
Imagine if we had invested in agriculture in the 1970s when farmers raised concerns about marketing problems, supermarkets were cited for illegal pricing, and Consumer Services investigated unfair pricing practices.
Imagine if we’d prepared for a post oil economy.

Nearly 50 years later, we’re still wrestling with the same issues: energy, food security, and economic fairness. And now, the stakes are even higher.

Our greatest opportunity for change is in front of us: the 6th Constitutional Convention. This isn’t just politics. It’s about power, identity, and how we shape the future for generations to come.

I urge Virgin Islanders near and far to learn about the last five constitutional conventions and what’s at stake with the sixth. Demand the information if you can’t find it. A constitution is more than words on paper, it’s a foundation. And like any living document, it can be amended, or, as we’ve seen in other countries, thrown out entirely.

Don’t settle for the status quo.
Even a rock, over time, is shaped by the elements.
So why not us?