Harmony

Harmony. 

I've always tried to live my life in a balanced fashion; never leaning too far in one direction or the other. I thought this was the best way to live, and took great pride in my ability to accomplish this. However, the problem with balance is that it's kind of like juggling oranges. One slip in timing and the whole thing comes crashing down. 

Susan Bender Phelps has a different view about balance. She strives for harmony in her life as opposed to balance. Harmony is basically, "a pleasing combination or arrangement of different things." Rather than giving everything an equal value and attempting to balance them, seek to find harmony in the arrangement of values in your life. 

Phelps says, "Balance is very hard to maintain; there is a precariousness to it. But when I think of harmony, I think of music." Deborah K. Heisz, author of Live Happy compares Phelp's life to a symphony, "in which pieces ultimately play in harmony." I had never really considered this life view, but I find it definitely something to aspire toward. I'd much rather enjoy the sweet sound of harmony instead of battling to keep all the oranges in the air.