As the pendulum swings... A note on life and time management.

We didn't have a pendulum, so you're stuck with my man's pocket watch...

Have you ever felt like the whole deal with 'a balanced life' was just one big sham, invented with the sole purpose of making you and me feel inadequate? I've always been big on pursuing this mythical 'balance', which all the cool kids seemed to possess. That, however, changed for me last week. It wasn't a instant turnover, in fact this whole balance deal has been in the back of my head for a while now.

What was so special about last week, was that I spent most of it in bed with a tremendous head cold. This nasty condition made me sleep away most of the day as well as the nights and for the first time ever, I was okay it. I knew it meant this week would be much harder, I knew it meant it might not be as fun, as I would a) be recovering from the nastiness and b) have two week's worth of work to get done. But I was okay with it.

Why was I so okay with it? I asked myself that more than once. Slowly the answer began to form in my mind. I was okay with it because... wait for it... life is not about constant balance.

I will venture to say that life is about the complete opposite of constant balance and that our pursuit of it may be a large part of why so many of us feel less than great about how our days, months and years are spent.

Don't get me wrong, balance has its place in life. That place is just not on a day to day basis, but in a much larger scheme. That scheme is a year, or sometimes even years. As nature cycles through the months and seasons, so do we.

Exceptionally busy times are generally followed by much quieter times, where we can rest and rejuvenate, enabling us to face the next period of toils. After the harvest comes the sweet and quiet months of winter, a time to stay indoors and get lost in books and wool, learning things that will aid us through the next spring, summer and fall with a bit more grace.

2015 will, no doubt, be a busy year for me. I'll write my B.A. and (D.V.) begin my master's degree. If all goes well, we'll be moving next year. As I'm preparing for this busy time, I'm tweaking systems and trying out new things to make the year run smoother.

I hope you'll continue to join me as I work on embracing the different seasons life has to offer, one day at a time.