“It’s all about balance.” How often do you hear that? Say that? We spend a lot of time and energy trying to understand and achieve “balance” in life – but finding balance is a journey not a destination; a practice not an achievement. Balance is not about either where we were or where we are going, but finding the center between the two. It’s about finding that immediate center between two opposing factors and is relevant in so many areas of our lives. Balance is the harmonious centerpoint of the “space between” two opposites.
As we explore our own boundaries in life, we bounce off our edges, experience extremes (our highs and lows) and we expand our comfort zones. We experience opposition (our September Word of the Month) and we learn how opposition wakes us up, forces us to engage, solidifies our stance, and makes us stronger. Balance is an equal measure of two opposites. Think about the following and how each can be perceived as Opposition or Balance in life:
- Effort / Ease
- Strength / Softness
- Support / Space
- Holding on / Letting go
- Movement / Stillness
- Protection / Vulnerability
- Desire / Contentedness
- Restlessness / Peace
- Energy / Zen
- Thinking / Feeling
- Head / Heart
- Mind / Body
- Physical / Spiritual
- Freedom / Boundaries
- Work / Play
- Friends & Family / Self
- Excess / Abstinence
…the list goes on!
The Dailey Method classes are designed to help create balance in your body and your life by:
- Rooting down to rise up
- Stabilizing abdominals to engage your seat
- Being strong on the inside and soft/receptive on the outside
- Front-Body & Back-Body awareness
Practicing “all” the above life-concepts in our physical-bodies where possible.
We all have a wise internal “compass,” but it’s easy to get disconnected. Life pulls our attention, stimulates our senses, and can lead us off our “compass.” We get distracted, and sometimes lose our sense of center, our sense of self – and we lose our balance. A practice of “mindfulness” – constantly dropping-in or tuning in – is how we stay connected to our compass, and that’s how we can get back to personal balance.
Ferris Buehler famously said: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile you could miss it.” The same is true of balance – if we blink, we might miss it. Balance is something to strive for but noticing is the first step.
- There’s an expression that says, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.” Ultimately, embracing opposition is practicing balance – as we move through life. Those moments of perfect balance are fleeting! And those moments of balance are bliss. How do we practice balance?
- Be intentional – try to know your core values, who you are, and what you want.
- Tap into your inner-compass, tune inward. When you get distracted by outside “noise” or pulled by external influences, notice those distractions, close your eyes, and reconnect to yourself.
- Get grounded – you can feel stability by noticing the support beneath, around & within you. Friends and external circumstances can often be reminders and great supports (as in the picture from Daileyfest above), but the support within creates the real balance.
- Keep moving forward – don’t get attached to where you were yesterday or anxious about where you “should” be tomorrow. Know that each time you slip it’s a lesson to help you find that center again.
- Breathe – take a deep breath. Repeat. Do it again. Keep breathing.
- Feel – notice your extremes; feel your edges; use those experiences to create your own boundaries and to expand your comfort zone at the same time.
- Embrace the space between opposites – the “space between” is life. Life is not only where we were or where we are going…life is also happening now.
- Notice & Appreciate – in the space between things, notice where the balance is. Practice gratitude for those blissful moments.
We talked last month about how your one hour of class is a great time to practice and reflect what you want in your life. Last month you practiced embracing opposition. Balance and opposition are actually part of the same sphere. This month, practice noticing in class how balance truly is the challenge of finding support – and balance is the relationship between opposites. When you find harmony in the “space between” two opposites you may realize the perfect balance of stability and this can be so liberating! Wishing you many moments of bliss and balance this month!
Love & Gratitude,
Jill & Lorna