A delicate balance

I see it again and again.  I often forget though, what a delicate balance there is to life.  We get up in the morning and go through the routine and run out the door to work, we make dinner, pay the bills like the little robots we sometimes become.  We plan for tomorrow just expecting that it will be like today.  We tell ourselves that everything is under control.  The path ahead is paved and smooth.  We don't always fully realize that even the strongest, sturdiest of entities can be blown to pieces in just the right wind.  We aren't always expecting a turn in the path that throws us off balance.  As we are going down...we aren't even sure what happened.

Sometimes we just get back up and dust ourselves off.  Sometimes we are just too broken.  We are thrown off balance and can't seem to find our footing no matter how hard we try.  We struggle.  It always seems like a struggle with no end in sight.

It's oh so cliche....there are no guarantees.  Tomorrow is not promised.  Life can change in a moment.  We say it, knowing the wisdom in those words.  We don't really know what to do with that knowledge.  We don't always know how to live differently.  After the fall, we don't always know how to get back up and how to keep our balance.

I don't have the answers...and I am not actually sure there are any.  I don't know what tomorrow brings, what lies around the next corner.  The reality is that if I could see the future...good or bad...I still have to get my robot self up in the morning and head out into the day.

So what I'll choose is to endeavor to value those little moments while I can.  I'll choose to laugh, and enjoy the laughter.  I'll greet people in big ways. I'll embrace more and hold tighter.  I will show my love and share my love as long as I am able.  I will be encouraging and enthusiastic.  I'll sing and dance when the spirit moves me.  I'll choose joy.  I'll choose to let go of nonsense.  I'll choose to look at the world around me.  .  I'll choose to sit and listen and be present and learn from people.  I'll try not to let the drudgery of today take over my spirit.

And if the day comes when it seems as if I can go no further....I will give myself time, I will be gentle with myself as I struggle and strive to once again regain my balance and breathe in the goodness of life.

“‎Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen Hard. Practice wellness. Play with abondon. Laugh. Choose with no regrets. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is” 

~ Mary Anne Radmacher