“Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.”
The school girls laugh with glee, running from the slide to the swing to the monkey bars… One girl turns the other, no words exchange, a glance to the other side of the playground, a nod and a bolt to the teeter-totter.
All aboard on the see-saw, up and down, up and down and then as if that wasn’t enough, the games begin.
“Let’s see if we can keep one high in the air… size wins. The lighter of the two remains high in the sky at the mercy of the one with more weight. The cruel playground experience would have the light one plummeting to the ground with a quick dismount by the one in control. However, two can play at that game with a nimble move by the one in the air, catapulting the heavier one into the sky.
Neither is fun for the one that’s been jolted.
Yet, enter the scenario of 2 collaborative participants… the school girls strive to make the teeter-totter remain stable, both in the air, at equal heights.
Balance.
The energy required to maintain balance is enormous. Just as the teeter-totter needs attention, focus, cooperation and constant input to achieve balance, it is also true in our own lives.
And once that personal balance is achieved, is it a fleeting moment or one that can be sustained?
Perhaps balance isn’t the goal…
might we rather be better suited to learn how to adapt to the ups and downs, the soaring, the fast plummets, and the occasional moment of “balance?”
To be grounded…
Grounded is one of those terms with so many meanings and can easily become another “buzz” world much like balance.
What does it mean to be grounded? I chuckle as I know my father, an electrical engineer would have his own definition of “grounded” that is far removed from it’s meaning today.
To me, it represents a connection to the land and nature. When I’m on the teeter-totter of life with a feeling of being “out of balance,” I head to the woods. The more I walk through the trees hovering above all the hidden roots of their underground world, I begin to feel connected to things that matter most.
Peace tip #13
Balance is a temporary moment in time that leaves us constantly working to the next moment of “balance.” This process can be quite draining. To be grounded might allow us to be more resilient. “Being grounded” might just be another version for “peace.” Recall, that peace can be defined as “right and just relationships with self, others, and the Earth.”
Today, chose an activity that “grounds you,” whether it’s knitting, drinking coffee, eating a meal, reading, or walking, your choice. Think about all the others that are involved with your activity. For example, you are knitting… you purchased your yarn from the local yarn store and you had to drive to get there. Who was involved with making the car, providing the gas for the car, the postal carrier who delivered the yarn to the store, all those involved with working in the store, the person who raised the sheep… How many people are involved in this one act of knitting.
Connected, relationships, grounded… are all landmarks on our path of “peace in place.”
How are peace and being grounded related?