© Jan L. Richardson ◊The Painted Prayerbook◊
Happy equinox to you! Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we’re marking the autumnal equinox; happy vernal equinox to everyone in the southern half of the globe. Though I tend to think of the whole day as the equinox, it actually happens at a particular moment, specifically, the point when the sun is directly above the earth’s equator. Today that occurred at 3:44 PM GMT.
Darkness and daylight come in nearly equal measure on this day. It’s a good occasion to think about balance and how we find that in our lives. In a nice bit of timing, I’ve just wrapped up a season that involved lots of traveling. The trips were great, providing a good measure of work and retreat and play, often involving some of my favorite folks in this world. Still, I’m glad to be heading into a season in which I’ll be home more than I’m away. It’s time to hunker down and get back to work on a new book that’s due next year, and to attend to other things that only get done when I’m home for a stretch of time.
A while back I realized that it’s not balance I’m looking for in my life—at least not the kind of balance that implies a stasis and sameness to my days. That gets boring right quick. I tend to think more in terms of finding a rhythm of life that sustains me in the work (and the rest) to which I’m called. Some seasons are more intense than others, as with my summer of traveling; it’s great, but it’s not a pace I can keep through the year. Yet I can’t go for too long of a stretch of being at home, either; the walls start to close in.
Finding the rhythm that fits for me is part of my ongoing work. It can be a real challenge since the rhythm I need changes from season to season. But on this equinoctial occasion, I celebrate the gifts that come with each season, and the freedom to find the rhythms that bring wholeness to these days.
In the Carmina Gadelica, the collection of prayers gathered by Alexander Carmichael in Scotland in the 19th century, we find a prayer called “Jesus the encompasser” that strikes me as a good fit for this day. It reads, in part:
My Christ! my Christ! my shield, my encircler,
Each day, each night, each light, each dark;
My Christ! my Christ! my shield, my encircler,
Each day, each night, each light, each dark.Be near me, uphold me, my treasure, my triumph,
In my lying, in my standing, in my watching, in my sleeping.
Jesu, Son of Mary! my helper, my encircler,
Jesu, Son of David! my strength everlasting;
Jesu, Son of Mary! my helper, my encircler,
Jesu, Son of David! my strength everlasting.
By day and by dark, blessings to you.
September 23, 2008 at 10:54 AM |
I always appreciate your invitation to look for a rhythm rather than a sameness in my days – much as a sailboat uses her ballast to remain upright […or mostly so!] as the wind shifts in direction and speed, Christ, if and as I rest in Him, performs that function in my days – thanks, again.
September 23, 2008 at 2:45 PM |
I once had someone say to me that if you work for balance you’ll never achieve it. If instead you push for the opposite extreme, you’ll encounter balance along the way. I think far too many are seeking balance as static rest rather than the challenging pursuit of the other pole. Perhaps balance is more like the rhythmic swing of the pendulum.
September 27, 2008 at 11:48 AM |
This is my first visit to your site, and by God’s grace it is so timely! (and beautiful…)
Thanks for some lovely equinox/balance images to supplement the one I have of tightrope walking, or trying to learn. All too gracelessly, lurching a bit too far forwards and back, left and right, wishing my toes were a bit more primate in design, so I could hold on tight. Must stop looking at my feet, keep my eyes focused on Jesus, and trust.