In life, especially during these modern times that are a constant go, it’s easy to lose your balance.  But what do we really mean when we seek balance in reference to spirituality?  Balance is often thought of as a midpoint between two opposing forces.  Black and white, hate and love, faith and skepticism.  But life is not broken into a straight line that simply.  Most people assume that finding balance means never venturing too far into one side or the other; remaining in a true neutral.  Others believe it means staying only “in the light” and eschewing everything considered “dark.”  But we believe that neither one of these views is truly balanced.

True neutrality does not exist.  It’s an impossibility, because it assumes that there is some kind of universal “center” that is true for every single person.  But life is much messier than that.  We all experience different things, and even when we experience the same things, we may draw different conclusions from them.  So everyone’s idea of “neutral” is not the same.  And trying to remain only in this imaginary center point deprives you of experience.  In life we all experience highs and lows.  That is part of what makes life amazing; the endless state of change.  That should be embraced.

Similarly, remaining only in  “light” parts of our experience is not balanced either.  Too much of a good thing is still too much.  There is especially a tendency to only “be good” in religious communities.  But we are all only human, and denying that we have a darker side doesn’t make it go away.  We feel jealousy, and rage, and hate.  These are a fact of our life as much as love, and joy, and humility.  Suppressing those emotions in an attempt to remain “good” is harmful.

Balance should be a calmness. A space we create at our center. We should allow ourselves to feel all of the infinite emotions and experiences in this amazing world, without getting swept away by them. Balance is a place we return to. A place we find respite from the storm; a knowledge we carry with us that there is a refuge when it becomes overwhelming.  Finding balance in our lives can feel like a constant struggle if we’re fighting to remain in one spot.  If our lives were scales, and our experiences weights placed upon them, then we must understand that with every weight placed on one side, we must adjust the center point of the fulcrum between them.  That is the true nature of balance.  A constant dance of adjustment.  But once you free yourself from the concept that balance is a stationary place, it will become much easier to achieve balance.