I’ve always felt that life is ruled by the simple rule of balance. Plus and minus. Filling spaces. The great Mandala. Lately, I’ve really been experiencing that up and down fortune. A month ago I was at a really low point. My dad had died, and I had recently been “downsized” from my job. I was at odds with one of my kids. Some major bills were pressing, with no writing work in sight. I was frightened and disoriented, immersed in the anathema of depression and daytime television.
That lasted about a week. Bored by my self-pity, I began concentrating on my true love: writing. I wrote some short stories, cleaned up some poems, wrote essays, revamped my Web site.
Feeling better, My mind de-fuzzed, I started sending out stuff—including notes to editors that I was ready for more work, please. I signed up for substitute teaching, stopped panicking, and started enjoying my free time, reading, playing with my dog, mowing the lawn, walking. And you know what? Time passed, and things got better.
In September I started my second grad school term, got called for a long-term sub (more on that another time!), received three assignments from one editor and some freelance work for my old company. My son and I talked everything out, I paid the bills. Suddenly, there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done!
How did I do it? I waited. Life continues, the wheel turns. No one dies without some sort of karmic balance—debts paid, love accepted. I do believe that.
But even more than waiting, I worked. Hard. I kept in contact with friends and family who love and support me no matter what stage I am at. And I didn’t give up. I didn’t lie down and wallow in self-pity, but kept going, convinced that things would get better if I worked to make them better.
Yes, life has a balance, and while we will always have lows, we will also always have highs. What some people don’t understand is that sometimes the highs need help. The Wheel of Life does turn, but the ups come easier if we give it a little push by having friends, faith, and, most important, the willingness to work.
That lasted about a week. Bored by my self-pity, I began concentrating on my true love: writing. I wrote some short stories, cleaned up some poems, wrote essays, revamped my Web site.
Feeling better, My mind de-fuzzed, I started sending out stuff—including notes to editors that I was ready for more work, please. I signed up for substitute teaching, stopped panicking, and started enjoying my free time, reading, playing with my dog, mowing the lawn, walking. And you know what? Time passed, and things got better.
In September I started my second grad school term, got called for a long-term sub (more on that another time!), received three assignments from one editor and some freelance work for my old company. My son and I talked everything out, I paid the bills. Suddenly, there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done!
How did I do it? I waited. Life continues, the wheel turns. No one dies without some sort of karmic balance—debts paid, love accepted. I do believe that.
But even more than waiting, I worked. Hard. I kept in contact with friends and family who love and support me no matter what stage I am at. And I didn’t give up. I didn’t lie down and wallow in self-pity, but kept going, convinced that things would get better if I worked to make them better.
Yes, life has a balance, and while we will always have lows, we will also always have highs. What some people don’t understand is that sometimes the highs need help. The Wheel of Life does turn, but the ups come easier if we give it a little push by having friends, faith, and, most important, the willingness to work.
posted by J.B. Lee | 7:39 AM
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