Saturday, March 24, 2012

The Act of Balance

Since this is my first blog and I am writting all of`them as randomthoughts, it is pretty clear that I haven't actually thought about the write up and would be writting as the thoughts are flashing in my mind. You may argue that the title certainly requires some premediatated ideas to write upon but actually, you need not. You are experiencing it every second and executing it so beautifully and in a subtle way that you are not at all taking any note of it!
I was intrigued by a conversation (or rather some bits of conversation as I was not the immmediate listerner) of a spiritual person. He was explaining the nuances of work-life balance and I would presume that most of his audience certainly belong to the material world and are not like him.
My first encounter with the act of balancing was me seeing my uncle (in his college days), balancing a cricket bat on just one finger. I was awstruck. How could he do this? The bat has to fall!!!
A few days later, a circus came to our town, Miraj. The town is still a town (or let me call it a fast emerging city in SouthWestern Maharashtra). I vividly remember the staged conversation of the manager (presumably) and his assistant to fix a 5 m wooden pole vertically so that one of their acrobats can perform the gravity defying act on the top of the pole. But how to fix the pole on the ground? Then emerged a well built volunteer from the back stage and offered to balance the pole on his teeth (Yes! the teeth in his own mouth). My eyeballs almost protruded out while watching the girl doing amazing stunts on the top of the pole while the man is doing his act of balance on the ground!
Consequently I grew up (really??) and made my way to 8th standard where physics told me that the man (subjects are normally gender biased) is able to balance himself only when the 'centre of gravity' passes through the area covered by his feet. Then came a spiritual (or ritual??) awakening with the elders telling about the act of balance by the three big gods (Yep, there is a discrimination in the heavens too! :)) The Bramha creates, The Vishnu sustains and The Mahesh (for teenagers, that's our Mahadev or Shankar or Kailashpati etc) destroys! Simple but yet brilliant delegation for balancing.
As I have already mentioned, balancing is a subte skill your mind acquires with experience. Or rather, there is no need to acquire this skill as it is inherent to the mind.But, if you are willing to win a medal for the forthcoming Olympic Games at London, you need to train your body though as the skill is not so inherent to the human body! :)
We are also obsessed with balancing in a day-to-day life. For a working professional, reaching office on time, completion of the designated work within the deadline or preferably well before the deadline and the act of balance is pleasing your wife (or husband), your parents, bros,sis etc etc, meeting your friends or calling them occasionally, read a wonderful book you had bought 3.5 years back or catch up with your favourite movie, listening to music or BLOGGING!!!
Note - The students, housewives, retirees, army men, aliens should chalk out their own balancing acts. I am not going to jot down all of them!
When a working professional like me starts cribbing about the work in a spare time, there you start losing the balance o life. Frankly speaking (and statistically no proven), i believe that 95% of us (working professionals) hate to see office everyday and peak is actually attained on Monday Mornings. So almost everybody is sailing in the same boat. Hello, the rest of the 5% professionals and some of the unfortunates from 95% lot, please concentrate on the office work you have brought home for the weekend!
The cribbing eats the rest of the conscious hours available with you where you can make merry. Precisely, at this point, you tend to lose your 'centre of gravity' which goes off the feet. There is an increased (or rather 100% probability) that you will fall flat on your face. Never lose this time! Make the best use of it!
I am not an expert to give remedies about the swollen face if you have already fallen flat. And you don't need one. Because you know what you have to do!
May the 'centre of gravity' be always with you!

Best Regards,
Amit