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| Photo: Pixabay |
I wish I had
appreciated my ankles while I had them.
But who ever
thinks about ankles? They connect one’s feet to one's legs and do myriads of
jobs we never even think about as we walk, climb stairs, and dodge obstacles.
Until… they don’t work right anymore.
Balance is
becoming an issue for me.
Literally.
Physically.
Practically.
These days I tend
to fix my eyes on the path just ahead of me to make sure I place my feet on
level ground. Uneven ground is not my friend. It sends me into painful wobbles.
And so I keep my head down, and focus on the ground at my feet.
I was walking this
way the other day on my short jaunt to the mailbox. Eyes down, focused on
keeping my balance.
When I returned to my driveway, I caught something red out
of the corner of my eye, and I glanced up to see my large crimson geraniums
smiling at me from their planters by the fence. The plum and jasmine coloured
petunias waved in cascades by the front door. A flutter of chortling sparrows
partied in my giant elm tree. I breathed deeply and tipped my head back to take
in the limitless blue sky.
What a lovely day!
All these things I
miss every time my focus is on keeping my balance.
Finding balance in
life and in writing is important. It is a good thing. It is a necessary thing,
for best work and best health. But I must take care lest I get so consumed with
achieving perfect balance that I forget to look up, to notice, to appreciate,
and to enjoy the wide wonderful world around me, and my place in it.
But of course, the
real message of this post is … appreciate your ankles, they’re the only ones
you’ve got. ;)
Joylene writes from Edmonton where she lives with her Cowboy and her wonky ankles. Find her blog at Scraps of Joy.
Great take on the 'stop and smell the roses' theme!
ReplyDeleteOr the geraniums, in this case. 😊
DeleteBalance and focus - both necessary :) Thanks for this practical reminder, Joy.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ruth.
DeleteI'm sorry to hear of your wobbly ankles and how it affects your balance, but I appreciate how you use this life example to share with us what you've learned about balance. I understand how you strive to achieve good balance for walking, but I smile when you talk about our fixation on finding "perfect balance" in our living.
ReplyDeleteI love your closing, "(. . . I must take care lest I get so consumed with achieving perfect balance that I forget to look up, to notice, to appreciate, and to enjoy the wide wonderful world around me, and my place in it." We need to keep a degree of flexibility in our schedules lest we miss out on the beautiful people and the beautiful happenings around us that give us something to smile and write about. Perhaps this other part of life, outside our work, is the counterweight or counterbalance we need to keep our ankles from wobbling.
That's exactly it, Sharon. Thanks for your wonderful comment. 😊
DeleteI don't really have wonky ankles, but I do have the habit of looking at my feet or just ahead as I walk. I'm not sure why I developed this habit, but I will try to change it, even if I have to stop and stand still in order to look around me. Thanks, Joy, for this post about your beautiful ankles.
ReplyDelete