A Matter of Balance

overheard conversationSnippets of overheard conversation can sometimes have a profound impact on my life. Such was the case when a young boy and his dad cycled past me.
The boy said, “The ground is really hard if you fall.” His dad agreed and told him that was why they had worked so hard on balance, so he’d be less likely to fall. That is all of the conversation I heard, but it was enough.

The thought of balance stayed with me. Not balance on a bicycle, but in life.

My life consists of many good things. The problem comes when I focus on a few of them and neglect the others. Without a proper balance, I become unstable. This may not be evident right away, but eventually, my quality of life is affected. If I don’t pay attention to the warning signs I’m headed for a fall.

Like the young boy on the bicycle, I have fallen and experienced some hard landings. Getting back up can be difficult. The bumps and bruises remind me to be more careful next time.

The simple wisdom I overheard was timely. Fall is typically a season of new beginnings as activities resume and days get busier. In the past, I have been known to take on too many commitments. Time and attention are taken from other areas in order to keep up. This creates an unbalance physically, emotionally and relationally.

I’m getting too old to pick myself up easily after a fall. For that reason, I’m working hard to keep balance in my life. I know I can’t be the only one who struggles with this.

How are you doing with maintaining balance and do you have any tips to share?

Spinning My Wheels

#inspiration, spinning wheels, lesson, quote
tire photo from pixaby.com

I noticed the little boy as I was driving slowly through a residential neighbourhood. He was on a bicycle with training wheels. What first caught my attention was how fast he was pedaling. His little legs couldn’t have moved any faster!

Unfortunately, one of his training wheels had been caught between stepping stones in his yard. This meant the bike wasn’t level and without the proper wheels on the ground, he wasn’t moving. All his hard work was getting him nowhere.

I thought to myself, the poor child doesn’t know that no matter how hard he pedals the bike won’t move until he gets unstuck.

A voice inside me said, “This is a good visual of how you spin your wheels and wonder why you don’t get anywhere.” Ouch! The truth can hurt when it smacks you in the face.

When I don’t get the results I’d hoped for I often keep doing the same things as before but intensify the effort. Albert Einstein said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

What is needed is for me to look at my situation from different angles. Being objective can help me figure out what is causing me to be stuck. I might be able to fix things on my own or I may need assistance.

Once I get back on a level surface I can move forward instead of suffering the frustration of spinning my wheels.

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