I feel like I just wrote a post on balance the other day. Oh yeah, it wasn't even a month ago. And yet, balance is what's on my mind .... again.
Life is good. But life is busy these days. I'm finding that my room is extremely cluttered, which is always a warning sign for me that my life is a bit out of balance. Ministry. Community. Prayer. Self care. Friends. Special interests and hobbies. It's hard to balance it all. I'm not seeking perfection, but I have no desire to become overstretched and stressed and completely out of whack. Been there. Done that. Seeking something else in my life. Perhaps that's why I'm especially tuned to the warning signs of imbalance.
One great thing about my journey into religious life is that I also discovered the value of spiritual direction. I started meeting regularly with a spiritual director when I started my discernment process. I've had two other spiritual directors since then as I've moved about. There is something incredibly valuable and blessed in having someone that you check in with regularly to talk about life and God and your relationship to God. It has something to do with accountability and objectivity I think, but also just the idea of having a companion on the journey. I had a great visit with my current spiritual director yesterday. Talked about the balance thing. It helped. I think EVERYONE should have a spiritual director - not just those of us in religious life.
I'm rambling because I should be putting down the computer and going to bed after a LONG but good day at work - we had an evening this meeting with a focus group of young adults to talk about reviving our justice programming for young adults at my place of ministry -- and I'm wide awake. It was a great night and I'm excited about the possibilities but if I don't go to bed I won't be functional enough tomorrow to see how we can put some of it into action.
And so, in my eternal quest for balance, I am turning off the computer for the night.
Peace my friends.
2 comments:
What you said about your room getting cluttered really rang true for me - the worse it gets (well they, actually, because in my life I have an entire how to mess up!) the more out of whack I know my life is getting.
But interestingly, the same can be true in reverse. I find that tackling the clutter helps me re-find some balance.
Anyway, I enjoyed this and your last post about balance. It's a while since I visited your blog and am glad to be back.
It shows how tired you are when you have an 'evening this meeting'...
Even good exciting things are stressors. To be good for others, one must be good to oneself!
My mother always said that you can tell your mental health by how your area looks. I hated that... but as I get older, I see that it is true.
:-)
Post a Comment