This article was posted in “The Healing Path” some years ago.  It’s a good piece~  Just wanted to share it again

Could striving for life balance be reaching for an ideal that is an illusion?

What I mean by life balance is having the various aspects that make up our lives, flowing smoothly and easily. When new experiences come into our lives that create uneasiness and chaos…invited or uninvited do we still need to be striving for balance? During this time of reaching, we are no longer being present to what is happening in the now…we are trying to BE something else. It almost seems as though this striving is a form of resistance to what is…which may intensify the feelings of uneasiness and chaos in our lives rather than bring us the peace we so desire.

Some years back, I was a single mom, working part time. My youngest son became extremely ill. My life began to feel way out of balance. I could hardly keep up with what needed to be done. Working, raising my boys, getting my son to all of his medical appointments, keeping up with his treatments (which had to be done every 4 hours around the clock), along with a million other details. There was an internal sense that I was not “doing it right.” So, I went to the book store and picked up a book that explored life balance. As I read through the book the words felt like a slap in the face! What I needed was a hug!!! The discussion read like a like to-do list. I already had too much on my plate and none of it could come off. The author acted like if I could just follow her step-by-step program, all would be well~

Life balance started to look like something other people could accomplish…but not me.

But, in truth, my life had moved into a new rhythm…I had to listen and tune into the new heart beat…the new pulse. I needed to become fully present to what was happening rather than striving to have things different. Some moments felt balanced, while other moments felt like I was falling off a cliff. I did a lot of breathing. I eased up on my judgment of how my life was “supposed to be.” I stopped comparing myself to others…and I used that book as kindling in our wood burning stove!!

Some years later my son’s health returned and life moved into new possibilities…there was a new rhythm. With my son’s health, came a strong steady heart beat…a more consistent rhythm…one we could grove with on a day to day basis.

Maybe our lives are filled with many starts and stops that show us how to be present to the ebb and the flow…to the ever changing seasons. Maybe when we are 90 years old and we are looking back on our lives from the broader perspective we will see a balance in all of the uneasiness and chaos…a balance in the ebb and flow. We will see years that we raised children, years that we took care of ill loved ones, years that we played, years that we focused on careers, years that we were in relationships and years that we were not. We will be able to see that our life balance was there the whole time…we just didn’t have the broader view~

I give you permission to be fully present with where you life is now. There is no balance that you need to strive for, nothing that you are doing “wrong”…so, take a deep breath and let’s dance to the beat…to the flow…to the ever changing rhythms of life~

If you liked this conversation, check out more on today’s radio show:

“The challenge of balance:  Uh-oh don’t fall off!” (it is already archived!) www.blogralkradio.com/embracingpolarities

Have a rhythmic day~