Balance is not letting anybody love you less than you love yourself.- Ketut Liyer (Eat, Pray, Love)
In this day and age, the desperate search for balance is upon us. Our lives overfilled with….well, everything! There is almost an immediate guilt that arises if one decides to stop “overfilling” and make self-love a priority.
Balance.
The word balance can be both a thing and an action. Both a noun and a verb.
A scale; the remainder of money; the ability to stay grounded; weighted evenly.
If you are imbalanced, not properly distributed, the scale falters and plummets to the ground.
A word with so many meanings, yet the one thing that is endlessly searched out.
The Latin root means “having two.” Maybe this is why “even” is balanced.
An even number of objects = balanced
An odd number of objects= unbalanced
A balanced life? Then what are we talking about? “Having two?” To keep level? Not thrown off kilter?
What is balance anyway?
The dancer who slowly, methodically, gracefully extending her leg through passé while in relevé. Balance. The wide receiver diving into the air, clasping the football, then landing in a full out run. Balance. The soccer player dribbling the ball, while weaving in and out of the defense. Balance. The yogi in warrior pose. The pastry chef creating a masterpiece. The mom, holding her toddler on her hip while cooking dinner and helping her other kids with homework. Balance.
Everything in life requires some level of balance… a harmony. Then why is acquiring a balanced life like a tricky tightroping-walking business?? #datdatdaddlelattadatdatdada
Because extremes are easy…balance, however, is not an exact science. And for anyone who needs “exact“, balance is too vague. It requires trust. A trust in something you have to surrender to…that you have no exact control over.
So where does this delicate balance of perfection come into play in our lives? How do we know for sure when we have attained it?
Maybe the question is too deep, too analyzed, too…much. Maybe the answer is as easy as:
Or this:
Ha! Maybe..
But it feels more like:
Yes…hold on a little, let go a little, hold on….let go. Harmony. Balance.
The balancing act of life…like juggling balls comprised of various materials…some made of rubber, that bounce right back when you drop them; some made of lead that drop with a thud (do not pick those up again)…and some, the very important ones are made of glass, that shattered when they fall.
Finding balance should be easy (in theory). Whatever it is you are struggling to balance, let go of the lead ones, hold onto the glass ones, and allow the rest to bounce up and down in between.
Let go, hold on, and breathe in between…
This is where the harmony of life lives…life’s heartbeat. Let go a little, hold on a little, and breathe on the bounces.
It’s not an exact…and it represents different things to different people. Work versus Life. Family versus Work. Relationships versus Solitude. Kids versus Solitude! Strike that. #exhaustedmomhumor
For me, it is placing trust in the ying and yang. That, while the scale may teeter-totter back and forth, up and down…it will always return to center, when we tune into our inner core, that quiet voice within that shows us the way to what is truly important and true.
Mind, body and soul…in harmony. Balance. Give yourself time for self-care, self-love and stillness.
Like Ketut says, “Balance is not letting anybody love you less than you love yourself.”
So what does balance mean to you?
Peace,
J
rundanceclimb 