Some of us buy into the illusion that we can work hard to get our lives organized and “balanced,” and it will stay that way forever … perhaps even thinking we will live “happily ever after.”
But sameness is not balance. One of the givens of life, and of being human, is that we are constantly adapting, growing, learning and changing. Our homes and our cars are splendid examples, as they teach us that all objects are in a constant state of change and disintegration. We have difficulty seeing our world this way, as we’re often blind to reality.
The idea of balancing our hectic lives is much different than living in balance. Some of us have designed our lives so tightly that any change or emergency can throw us into turmoil. For example, parents often set up child care to deliver their children every morning and pick them up after work, and then carefully plan their work to fit into their child-care routines. Then one child gets sick right when there is a special project at work … and their lives and households fall into shambles. Just like walking on a high wire … one false step, or leaning to far, can lead to disaster.
Life is a forever changing process. When we try to treat it like a series of planned events we run into trouble. The secret to living in balance is internal, not external. Living in balance can never be accomplished through the manipulation of external events. Balance will never be reached once and for all … that’s just life and the human condition.
Balance is peaceful. It has no striving, twirling or unsteadiness.
Five ways to move yourself towards living in balance are to:
Need help to live in balance? Call Betty at 647-268-0482.
***Paraphrased from Meditations for Living in Balance by Anne Wilson Schaef