Balance is Dynamic

Recently, my teenage son approached me requesting help with an art project — a mobile. We had not worked on a craft together in some time, as screens have taken over much of his interests, so I was eager to spend quality time with him. The project was to create a hanging mobile made of sticks, strings, and various paper objects hung in layers in a delicate equilibrium. My son struggled with the task, which required precision and advanced fine motor skills. Any slight movement, such as a shift in the draft, handling of the string, or the weight of the glue, could disrupt the balance. Every time the proportion was disrupted, we had to readjust, tweak strings or add weight to regain stability.

On the first day of school, my son returned with a crumpled and tangled mess of his mobile and an F grade. After working to untangle it, fix the objects, and readjust the balance, he delicately carried it to class and received a passing grade. However, this experience sparked a meaningful conversation about the similarities between life and the art project.

Balancing work, family, friends, personal health, and more is a constant struggle, much like the delicate balance of the mobile. Every new “arm” added to our life’s mobile or a slight shift in existing ones requires readjustment to regain stability. Life throws new curveballs, leaving us to wonder if things will ever be “normal” again. In reality, balance is dynamic and requires constant transformation to maintain stability.

I remember the challenge of raising young children while balancing work and personal life. Nursing an infant, caring for a toddler, pumping during work meetings, and catching up on work late into the night were overwhelming. The levers to adjust were personal care and social connections, and they took a back seat. The cycle of sickness from daycare took a toll on our marriage and emotional health. Caring for aging parents added to the stress and exhaustion. Over time, we realized that this was the new “normal”.

Through the struggles, we learned the importance of conscious choices and prioritizing what is essential. I frequently prioritized my family over my career, taking on less critical roles for more flexibility and being present for my loved ones and myself. The pandemic brought a slower pace of life, and a reminder of the fragility and the importance of our limited time, teaching us to focus on what was most important.

Just when we thought we had figured out the precision and skills to tweak our “mobile” of life, the pandemic added its toll, and our aging parents’ health started to fail, presenting new challenges and requiring a unique balancing act as well another mental shift to the new “normal”. It was a reminder that the only way balance would be enduring was if nothing ever changed, and that would make for an unusually dull life indeed.

Who knows what life has in store ahead? The “normal” is always shifting and I hope I can remember that if there’s any constant, it’s that balance is a dynamic state, and life requires frequent adaptation and adjustments along the way to maintain equilibrium.