Keeping Balance

Life is all about balance.  Have you ever given that any thought?  We have two eyes, ears, arms, legs, lungs, kidneys, even nostrils.  Our bodies are perfectly proportioned (given a genetic twist here and there); and even inside where we might have one organ, there is another organ (or two) opposite it that maintains that balance.  When you really think about, it’s amazing!  So how does that matter for the rest of our being?  Writer and theologian Thomas Merton taught that “Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance, order, rhythm and harmony.”  Sometimes we are in perfect balance within ourselves and our lives, and, well, sometimes we are not!

This morning, in my exercise class, we were practicing our “tree pose.”  You know, the one where you stand perfectly still on one leg while the other leg is bent with your foot pressed against your thigh, hands held above your head like branches.  I will admit that most mornings, I can do this without too much of a problem, at least on one of my legs.  This morning, I couldn’t balance myself on either leg.  Trying not to get frustrated, I began to wonder what was keeping me off balance.  I wasn’t too tired or hungry. My clothes fit right, so no slipping and sliding on loose fabric.  I was feeling good about myself (heck, I got up at 6 and went to class, right?), so what was going on?  Then I began to wonder if the imbalance was mental and not physical.  Maybe today needs to be about tying up loose ends and restoring balance, order, rhythm, and harmony to my life.  I’ll finish my edits on my next novel, get that stack or paperwork completed, make the phone calls I have been putting off, and begin to refocus on doing what I aspire to do best – writing my next tale.

And I should give a big thanks to those who help me to maintain balance in my life: my husband, my mother, my children, my closest friends, and God.  And thank you to those helping me to finish putting together Picture Me.  You all are the instruments that keep my life in perfect harmony.