Friend of Julie: Paradise Found

Life is about keeping a balance and when we are thrown off-balance we can choose to adjust ourselves or get blown around like a palm tree in a hurricane. I've learned that adjusting is a better choice. I look for the rainbow in the storm and then paradise is found.

North Shore of Oahu. Photo by Theresa

Keeping balance in my life includes getting a good night's sleep, so I can start fresh again in the morning. For the past couple of weeks, my life has been full of work and home projects. At the end of the day, I was exhausted. As I walked up the stairs to my bedroom each night, I looked in my office at my computer and pondered "sleep or blog?" Sleep won out. I can only do so much in a day and sleep is key for me to maintain my balance.

I would love to say I've been so quiet on this blog because I've been away on vacation in Hawaii or visiting my friends in California, but that is not the case. In fact, I cancelled my vacation to Southern California, which was schedule for the end of this month, because there was so much was going on at one time.

During this storm, I continued to exercise and I never used food to help with the stress. It is only in reflecting back that I realized this - and this is big! It took a storm for me to see just how much I've changed. Now if that isn't paradise...

I have been following your posts and comments. Love the new recipes. Love the support you've given each other (and me).

One thread that has stayed in my mind is about someone who looked saw their weight on their chart at the doctors office. It's a challenge for us each time we go to the doctor. First you had to turn your head away to avoid seeing the number on the scale, then you had a sit and wait for the doctor with the number right there on your chart.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

Time slows down.

Your heart beats slower.

Your head goes in a million directions. Should I? No. Yes. No....

It isn't any easy thing to sit there all that time and not look. Okay, you looked. Now you know your weight. Yes, you agreed not to weigh yourself or look at the number at the doctors office, but how many other things did you do for yourself that day, this month, or in the past year were positive? Focusing on this one tiny error will toss you into a whirlwind and could toss you off-balance in other areas. Find your balance. Forgive yourself. Accept the lesson:  when you break a promise -- it is not worth the storm that follows.

We learn from our mistakes and the opportunity we have is to keep moving forward to find our balance again, to find our paradise. It's a much better of a place to be.