Life is a balancing act. We strive to find a balance between work and play, activity and rest, social activities and time spent alone.
The tricky thing is, every person's balance point is different. We each have to discover what works best, and those many and varied percentages in all facets of our lives may shift from time to time.
Balance is always a work in progress.
The work of finding balance isn't just happening for each of us personally, it is a constant point of tension within families, communities and on the planet as a whole.
Our world has certain rhythms in nature that can help demonstrate the art of balance. Think of how day turns into night. Summer fades into fall. Land stretches between bodies of water.
Within those rhythms, the earth experiences transition points. Think of the mucky banks of a river or the hazy fade of twilight. Just as we shiver in those first crisp days before fall arrives or adjust the way we walk when the ground starts to slope between flatlands and the mountain, transitions in our own lives require some change.
And change can be hard.
We are built to change. We are designed to flow and adapt. You have the power to find balance in your body and in your life.
We aren't meant to keep a constant, unchanging pace. Our bodies look for time to rest. They crave different rhythms. Otherwise, we feel trapped or "stuck in a rut."
As we work to find balance in our lives, we can look to nature as a guide. It's as simple as looking out your window.
What are the trees doing today?
In the summer, the trees are soaking in the sun. They are full and vibrant - just bursting with life. The trees are home to many different animals all skittering around enjoying the bounty of summer.
In the fall, the trees begin to lose their leaves in order to conserve energy. The critters in their branches are also making preparations for colder weather, storing food and making comfy homes.
By the time winter comes, the trees are streamlined and ready to withstand the cold. The animals are still, huddled down and conserving their energy and their supplies.
By spring, life returns to the trees. Flowers bloom, leafs sprout as the tree realizes they can start using its energy in new ways. The birds sing. Animals scurry about.
What are the trees doing outside your window today? How can you incorporate that wisdom into your day today? If it is winter, maybe you allow yourself to take a short (or long) nap. If it is spring, you can take a walk in the warming air, greeting old friends and maybe even making new ones.
Day to day, you can also find more balance by considering the two types of energy - Yin and Yang.
The tricky thing is, every person's balance point is different. We each have to discover what works best, and those many and varied percentages in all facets of our lives may shift from time to time.
Balance is always a work in progress.
The work of finding balance isn't just happening for each of us personally, it is a constant point of tension within families, communities and on the planet as a whole.
Our world has certain rhythms in nature that can help demonstrate the art of balance. Think of how day turns into night. Summer fades into fall. Land stretches between bodies of water.
Within those rhythms, the earth experiences transition points. Think of the mucky banks of a river or the hazy fade of twilight. Just as we shiver in those first crisp days before fall arrives or adjust the way we walk when the ground starts to slope between flatlands and the mountain, transitions in our own lives require some change.
And change can be hard.
We are built to change. We are designed to flow and adapt. You have the power to find balance in your body and in your life.
We aren't meant to keep a constant, unchanging pace. Our bodies look for time to rest. They crave different rhythms. Otherwise, we feel trapped or "stuck in a rut."
As we work to find balance in our lives, we can look to nature as a guide. It's as simple as looking out your window.
What are the trees doing today?
In the summer, the trees are soaking in the sun. They are full and vibrant - just bursting with life. The trees are home to many different animals all skittering around enjoying the bounty of summer.
In the fall, the trees begin to lose their leaves in order to conserve energy. The critters in their branches are also making preparations for colder weather, storing food and making comfy homes.
By the time winter comes, the trees are streamlined and ready to withstand the cold. The animals are still, huddled down and conserving their energy and their supplies.
By spring, life returns to the trees. Flowers bloom, leafs sprout as the tree realizes they can start using its energy in new ways. The birds sing. Animals scurry about.
What are the trees doing outside your window today? How can you incorporate that wisdom into your day today? If it is winter, maybe you allow yourself to take a short (or long) nap. If it is spring, you can take a walk in the warming air, greeting old friends and maybe even making new ones.
Day to day, you can also find more balance by considering the two types of energy - Yin and Yang.
The YinYang symbol (above) is a beautiful representation of balance. It's an ancient Chinese concept describing how opposite forces work together and influence one another.
Yang is traditionally represented by light colors. It's the hard, fast, thinking, pushing energy. Yin is the darker energy. Yin is soft, slow, feeling, receptive energy.
Though the two may seem entirely opposite, both require the other in order to exist and function in the world. In fact, each of these energies has a tiny drop of the other within their field. (Here it's represented with the stones in the eye of each swirl, but it is traditionally a small circle of the opposing color at the center of each.)
Running is considered Yang energy, but the ease of the distance runner's breath brings in the yin component.
Sleeping is a Yin activity, but the grind of your teeth or the grip of your pillow is how the Yang energy presents itself.
You can bring a little gentle Yin energy into everything you do. Long, soothing breaths can help to soften a challenging argument or a difficult hike uphill.
Similarly, you can bring some powerful Yang energy into even the most Yin situations. Try setting an intention before your meditation practice or adding some strong brush strokes to your landscape painting.
To experience Yin and Yang in your body, lay flat on the floor. Tighten every muscle. Ball your hands into fists, scrunch your face into a knot, pull your knees to your chest, flex your feet. Squeeze everything. This is Yang.
Next, allow your body to come back to the floor. Release the tension in your face, your hands, your legs, your belly. Allow the floor to hold all of your weight. Take a deep breath and let it all go. This is Yin.
You can transition between the two experiences. Crunch and think Yang. Release and feel Yin. Notice the space between the two when you are between Yin and Yang. Notice the spaces in and around your body that continue to relate to the other energy no matter which side of the symbol you are experiencing.
If you want to add more balance to your day and your life, you can determine which side of the coin you lean toward. If you are more Yang, try adding some Yin to your life to find balance. If you tend to be more Yin, explore the Yang energy.
Yang activities include:
Running errands
Preparing for a presentation
Working out, running, exercising
Learning through lecture or reading
Pushing yourself (goals or intentions)
Yin activities include:
Listening to beautiful music
Resting
Gentle stretching
Observing feelings
Creative exploration
Actually, it is hard to qualify any activity as entirely Yang or Yin because it's really the energy behind the action that has an affinity for one side of the symbol over the other. Plus, there is always a little of Yin at the heart of anything Yang.
Our bodies, our lives ... really our planet and everything on it, operates best in balance. You can explore the way you find balance. The Yin and Yang of your life can guide you.
Be, right now. Allow your body to find balance. A great place to start is to find balance between the busy thoughts in your head (Yang) and the quiet knowing in your heart (Yin). Allow a gateway between the two places to open up. Head and heart communicate when you allow yourself to Be.
Yang is traditionally represented by light colors. It's the hard, fast, thinking, pushing energy. Yin is the darker energy. Yin is soft, slow, feeling, receptive energy.
Though the two may seem entirely opposite, both require the other in order to exist and function in the world. In fact, each of these energies has a tiny drop of the other within their field. (Here it's represented with the stones in the eye of each swirl, but it is traditionally a small circle of the opposing color at the center of each.)
Running is considered Yang energy, but the ease of the distance runner's breath brings in the yin component.
Sleeping is a Yin activity, but the grind of your teeth or the grip of your pillow is how the Yang energy presents itself.
You can bring a little gentle Yin energy into everything you do. Long, soothing breaths can help to soften a challenging argument or a difficult hike uphill.
Similarly, you can bring some powerful Yang energy into even the most Yin situations. Try setting an intention before your meditation practice or adding some strong brush strokes to your landscape painting.
To experience Yin and Yang in your body, lay flat on the floor. Tighten every muscle. Ball your hands into fists, scrunch your face into a knot, pull your knees to your chest, flex your feet. Squeeze everything. This is Yang.
Next, allow your body to come back to the floor. Release the tension in your face, your hands, your legs, your belly. Allow the floor to hold all of your weight. Take a deep breath and let it all go. This is Yin.
You can transition between the two experiences. Crunch and think Yang. Release and feel Yin. Notice the space between the two when you are between Yin and Yang. Notice the spaces in and around your body that continue to relate to the other energy no matter which side of the symbol you are experiencing.
If you want to add more balance to your day and your life, you can determine which side of the coin you lean toward. If you are more Yang, try adding some Yin to your life to find balance. If you tend to be more Yin, explore the Yang energy.
Yang activities include:
Running errands
Preparing for a presentation
Working out, running, exercising
Learning through lecture or reading
Pushing yourself (goals or intentions)
Yin activities include:
Listening to beautiful music
Resting
Gentle stretching
Observing feelings
Creative exploration
Actually, it is hard to qualify any activity as entirely Yang or Yin because it's really the energy behind the action that has an affinity for one side of the symbol over the other. Plus, there is always a little of Yin at the heart of anything Yang.
Our bodies, our lives ... really our planet and everything on it, operates best in balance. You can explore the way you find balance. The Yin and Yang of your life can guide you.
Be, right now. Allow your body to find balance. A great place to start is to find balance between the busy thoughts in your head (Yang) and the quiet knowing in your heart (Yin). Allow a gateway between the two places to open up. Head and heart communicate when you allow yourself to Be.