FAIR AND BALANCED

Before the Friday morning yoga class started, I silently spoke these words, “Speak universe through this practice.” I wanted more than a physical stretch of my limb. The focus of the class was balancing poses, which can be challenging for me any day depending on some unknown variable. Throughout the practice, my favorite yoga instructor kept reminding us to create, to fight, to struggle to maintain balance between each side of the body in a pose…nearly impossible but a worthy goal none the less.

By the end of the class, the universe rewarded me.

I thought of the four youngsters that can be found running through our house on any given Sunday. Inevitably, one will leave the upstairs play area to tattle on another about something and end with these words, “It isn’t, or she or he isn’t, fair.” A parent will intervene sometimes but most often the tattler is met with, “Go, work it out.” Said another way, “Go back and struggle to find the balance and fairness you think you deserve.”

What a valuable lesson to learn at an early age. Life isn’t fair. Fairness and balance is the goal but to even approach success and keep it, one has to create it, fight to implement it and struggle to keep it.

For me this is especially true regarding feeding my body and soul, exercising my body and spirit while maintaining a reasonably well organized and clean-living space. I have been practicing for a lifetime. I have had lengthy periods of success – inevitably something happens to the upset the daily routine; sugar, pasta, or bread, knocks on the door. I open it and the delicate balance escapes. Of course, I cry out, “This isn’t fair.” What I am learning is that individual battles may not be fair BUT looking back over my journey, I see balance.

The child screaming, “It isn’t fair,” has forgotten the times when they were the recipient of “fair” and the others felt unfairly treated. I can easily forget the times when my weight remained constant while I worked out infrequently or ate with abandonment. I didn’t yell “Unfair” then.

Life is so much like practicing balancing poses in yoga - we try to create and live fairness toward ourselves and others. It is a struggle. We flounder. We fear falling backwards or forward. Success can be elusive and the end results painful. When we are successful, we discover the struggle continues as we cling to the fruitful gain. Don’t be afraid to take a step back, look and examine, most I believe will find that the good and less than good (your definition) balances out. For me this has become a place to rest, to feel safe, strong, secure and to start talking to others about my journey toward a fair and balanced lifestyle. Remember fair and/or balance are relative to where you and only you are and it never last for long.

Ecclesiastes 4:6

PONDER THIS THOUGHT ---Don’t wait for life to be fair. Look for opportunities to create it.