Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Balance. Calm. Centeredness.

This past weekend, I gathered with a large number of friends for five days. And what I saw was disturbing. Of them, a good number were momentarily stepping away from enormously stressful lives that had them pulled in so many conflicting directions, that when they arrived, they scarcely knew which way was forward.

But an interesting thing ensued over our time spent together. I got to watch their anxieties peel away like the flaky skin of an onion. Hour by hour, day by day, those individuals, myself included, remembered what it was like to savor the things that matter most to us. Fills our tanks. Revitalizes our souls. Consumes us with an overwhelming sense of optimism that causes us to smile from the inside out.

Perhaps it’s age, or maybe its wisdom gained over having been-there-done-that so much that it now feels second nature. But I couldn’t help but notice a recurring theme amongst those who benefitted the most from our time together.

Each of us independently adopted the mentality that it was high time we stop trying to impress others. Stop attempting to push ourselves to our limits by how much we take on. And spend what time we have focusing on the things that are paramount to us, surrounding ourselves with those who share our most instinctual beliefs.

And you know what? Each and every one of us who adopted those sensibilities were able to part from one another keen in the knowledge that we’re now standing a little taller, no longer allowing life to weigh us down. That prioritizing the individuals we care most about is what will shelter us from a ton of life’s drama and deliver us to where we need to go. And that gifting those same individuals the present of our time—unrestricted by time, resources or blockages—is what matters most.

Since returning home, I’ve received a flurry of communications from those people. Some have had a hard time re-emerging themselves back into their everyday lives. Others have had their blinders removed, so to speak, and now have the strength to address things they may have been avoiding in their lives. But one thing is certain in all. Each and every one of them is more secure in the knowledge that they have what it will take to see them through, for now they are balanced, calm and centered.