About your balanced Life – PART 1

 

I think it was Ben Franklin who said;
“All things in moderation”.all-things-in-moderation-MT2

I have found this to be
great wisdom and advice,
and also used quite a
bit as a justification.

Similarly when we hear
that we should keep a
healthy balance in our Life -
what is missing in these sage
bits of understanding is the knowing
what exactly is being weighed in.

Put a piece of wood across a rock -
placing right in the center – perfectly balance.
Now put a bucket on each end – evenly.
So far so good – looks balanced so far!

Now get a 2″ by 4″ by 6″ block of pumice
and put it in the center of one bucket.
Then get a 2″ by 4″ by 6″ block of lead
and put it in the center of the other bucket.
Carefully. Make sure they are both centered.
Be sure each of them is spaced evenly.
We have to keep them balanced!!!

So… Weird.  We have the same quantities -
we measured and balanced them out evenly.
Yet – one side crashes to the ground,
and the other end soars upward.

Perhaps we aren’t taking a few things into
consideration when we seek our “balance”.

A “moderate” amount of things that are
detrimental to us is still not good for us -
no matter how “balanced” they may
seem against things that are good.

If I breathe good, clean air for half the day,
and the other half of the day I smoke – is
that being balanced? is that moderation?

I think anyone would answer no – of course not.
What about only…. 1/4 of the day then.
Is that in moderation?
It isn’t balanced.
But… What is?

Should only half the food I eat be cake, cookies,
candy, doughnuts, and other sweet deserts -
as long as the other half is “good” for me?
Wait – what should be in the “good” half anyway?

Should I get drunk only every other night?
That would be balanced, right?

Do I work hard every other day, and just do
the bare minimum the days in between?
That’s balanced.

I could go on and on with seemingly ridiculous examples.

But when we start to shift the “balance” one way
or the other – where does “moderation” exist?

Like Beauty – it is in the eye of the beholder!

For the most part, I think we define moderation
and balance as the ratio that we choose it to be
as it suits us in the moment or until we change it.

And why change it?

Because the value of it exceeds the cost.

When the cost is greater than the value we receive
and perceive from it (whatever “it” is) we will shift
our doing until the value rises above the cost.

This applies to everything in our Life. Everything.

And unfortunately, we often do not realize the real
cost of our actions until much later in Life – and
there is a much higher price to be paid…

So for now, take a look at the balance in your Life.
Is it really a balance?  Does your definition of
moderation boil down to “Whenever I want”?

There is much more ground to cover on this,
and I hope you take your living and your Life
seriously enough to really consider the choices
you make every day regarding your well being.

Don’t go through the days on auto pilot.
Be in charge of your choices :)

Stay tuned for more…

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