Summer withered grass to flaxen yellow,
Scorched leaves to brittle paper,
Dried lakes to cracked clay.
Chill autumn brought little relief —
Only frosted the devastation.
But with the early gentle rains,
The earth’s fissures softened
And desiccated plants began to dissolve.
Slowly, balance comes once again.
Many cultures describe old people as having seen many winters. Those elders have seen many cycles come and go, and their wisdom comes from long observation of life’s rising and falling.
If we have a long-range view, then we realize that equilibrium comes in the course of nature’s progression. Nature does not achieve balance by keeping to one level. Rather, elements and seasons alternate with one another in succession. Balance, as defined by Tao, is not stasis but a dynamic process of many overlapping alternations; even if some phases seem wildly excessive, they are balanced by others.
Everything has its place. Everything has its season. As events turn, balance is to know what is here, what is coming, and how to be in perfect harmony with it. Then one attains a state of sublimity that cannot be challenged.
“The best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man.” — Euripides
“There’s no secret to balance. You just have to feel the waves” — Frank Herbert
“The universe, they said, depended for its operation on the balance of four forces which they identified as charm, persuasion, uncertainty and bloody-mindedness.”
— Terry Pratchett
“True stability results when presumed order and presumed disorder are balanced. A truly stable system expects the unexpected, is prepared to be disrupted, waits to be transformed.” — Tom Robbins
We enjoyed a beautiful October rain here in San Diego. The hills around us are now starting to turn from a parched brown to their lovely sage green. My garden is sproting a number of rose blooms. and the grass is a lovely dark green. Summer’s over.
I look for balance in everything – my personal life, the garden, the world around me, the political scene. I see a lot of instability right now, so many things that are unsustainable in the way we deal with environmental issues and politics. Right now, the strongest hurricane ever measured in the Atlantic ocean is churning near Cuba. Right now, our political administration awaits possible indictments for outing a CIA agent. Right now, we teeter on an economic edge, waiting for any blow that could sink us into a recession or depression. Right now, the wealthiest among us are doing great, while the poorest struggle to survive in an ever more out of balance economic system. This is why I’m following politics and the economy — so I know what is ahead, even though people tell me it doesn’t matter who is in office, it doesn’t matter what is happening in the economy. These things do matter.
Change is in the air. The seasons are changing, the cold of winter is ahead. It will most likely be a very wet, rainy season here. Time to get ready. My street is being slurry-sealed today, so at least I know our roads here will be in good shape. Soon I’ll get my garden cleaned up, ready for winter. My new doors are in, the last of the big inside home projects complete. We still need to do the rain gutters and fix the block wall outside. I seem to be trying to add my winter layer of fat, so I’ve got to watch that! Our bodies know what’s ahead, even as we remain unaware that balance returns.
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