The Balancing Act Called Life

To make some sort of life in this world all of us need to specialize in something. It used to be a University Degree, but now it can take the form of a Trade or specialized skill to become a professional in your field. Doing this can set you up in life.

However, we can be sucked into this and loose so many aspects of life. Recently I have been so caught up in running my gym, sorting out budgets, finances and Planning for the future. I have also been training really hard and making sure my rest and recover is on point. I would love to visit international Sanctioned CrossFit events and chasing something like that takes a lot of time. Yesterday though I got pretty shaken up.

I send my sincere condolences and heartfelt sympathies to the family of the man who was shot and killed yesterday in Witbank. I didn't know any of you and don't pretend to, but just know that your story has shocked our town.

In order to save time, when I dropped my girlfriend off at work yesterday, I decided to take my running shoes with and go for a run when I got there. I had running intervals on the menu and it took me about an hour and 15 minutes to complete. Unbeknown to me. A block from where I was running a man was she and killed in his own house at 8:30 or there about in the morning.

I didn't know until later that day when everybody at the gym was telling me. It shocked me.

I started to think about the man, his family, his life his goals, and of that I know very little so the only logical similarities I could draw was with my own life.

Would I be content to walk out of this world now?

I must have stopped typing for at least 10 minutes thinking about that question and still I try to convince myself yes, but deep in my heart I still say, No.

The stress of your field of profession could have pulled you in so far that you have forgotten about the small things around you. The things that used to give you a sense of adventure and joy. I can feel it. And let me tell you, I am living my dream, I am in a job I am completely passionate about!

So how does this happen? if you figure it out, please tell me. But, I think, it starts in the future...the worry of it leads us so far into things we have control over. Much of our life is hard work yes, and it pays off, but much of it is half chance. Losing a contract, stock market crashes, government instability, death, so much can change over night, so much that can leave us at the will of outside circumstances. So we take out insurances and policies to hedge against it, spending money and energy on the unforeseen future. If you know me, you know I stress about the future, i am the first to try save and plan and as I get older i do it more.

But what if, we could take the foot off the gas once in a while. Take a weekend away. Plan a trip, do something you love, do something special with somebody you love? Will that destroy your whole world? On the contrary I think it may recover a sense of ourselves that we haven't seen in ages.

Today Im not giving you advise...I am rather giving myself advise, and if you would like to write some advise to your older self that you will be thankful for, well do that!
But here goes: To Myself:

Never forget that life can change instantly whether you think you are in control or not. Don't forget to use the 24 hours in your day to smile. Don't forget to look inside yourself for guidance, you know yourself the best, stop caring to much about other opinions of how you should run your life. Love yourself, look after yourself and then trust that the guidance you set yourself will lead to a thing of beauty! Take time out to review where you are going and if you are on the path you want to be. Find something in life you love and enjoy and never forget it, you owe yourself small pleasures because in these pleasure you can serve the world in your job even better than you already are, because you will be happier, you will know more and you will understand more.

I f you had x (years, days, months) to live, what would you change now...it may not even be an external change, it may be a way of thinking.

Peace.