Wish 10: Various kinds of balance.
In Christmas 2007, I missed writing for this blog. I wasn't busy really - I just procrastinated.
These were the wishes I was working on, but didn't get around to. It is divided into seven parts, and it is all about balance.
1. Balance my time
Not balancing my time is how I got into posting late in the first place.
When you look at the number of hours in a week, you can break it up into your main activities. You'll find there huge chunks of time spent sleeping, grooming, eating and traveling. Then, you'll have a balance of time spent on different tasks or roles: your job, your family, your friends, studies, entertainment, exercise, etc. The leftover time - your discretionary time - is something you have to decide how to use. Part of that is the "reflection time" I talk about many times in these posts.
Reflection time is good. It is how we further ourselves and mankind. Without reflection time, there could be no art, civilization and progress.
In our busy lives, the nice thing about reflection is that it could be combined with some other time. For example, worship time is also reflection time. You can also use waiting time for that. Caught in a traffic jam, or stuck in a bus - think about things that matter. Exercise and walking the dog time are perfect for reflection too - and that's three things at the same time.
Finally reflection helps relieve stress, which helps us live longer. Find that time for yourself. By writing this, I'm forcing myself to use this time to reflect.
2. Balance perceptions
Two years ago, when Britney Spears' 16-year-old sister announced that she was pregnant and will have her baby, I heard the most heartless comments around. Like, "She's only 16? What is wrong with her?" Also, "I'm not letting my kids watch the show she appears in." And, "What kind of parents do those kids have?" To them I say, give her a break.
Two thousand years ago, Mary, a 16-year-old, told her parents she was pregnant. And she gave birth on Christmas morning. Can you imagine what strong faith everybody had at that time to believe that a young virgin would become the mother of God?
Now consider Jamie Lynn Spears. She could have kept it quiet and had an abortion. Instead, she risked the scorn of her parents and the public. It was a mistake, and she's doing the right thing by keeping the baby. Part of critical thought and opinion is balancing the bad with the good.
3. Balance the checkbook
There are extremists who think money and businesses are evil. They are not inherently evil. When the people handling money and running businesses get greedy, they make profit-making bad.
I make no apologies for trying to make a living. I need money in this earth to feed my family, send my kids to school and have a roof over our heads. When I run a business, I have to hire people, who make their living from my venture.
If in the future I get to earn more than I need, then someone please remind me not to use it for frivolous material goods like flashy cars, jewelry or gambling. I should be giving something back to good causes.
4. Balance demeanor
I wish to always know the right time to be serious, and the rest of the time to smile.
5. Balanced meals
I wish to be sufficiently healthy by eating the right foods and getting exercise.
6. Balanced treatment of others
Someone accused me of being a hypocrite as a Christian. She said that I should only favor fellow Christians - not non-believers when I work with people. Even though I explained that it was simply good etiquette and simple respect for all people, no matter what their religion. She would not have it. She said that's only what politicians do.
Many people are set in their prejudices. This woman wore a badge of self-righteousness. But I am not going to wish that she change her perceptions, for that change may never ever come to pass. I will wish that despite extreme opinions, I will remain tolerant.
7. Balanced use of media
A friend subscribed me to an online forum on wellness. I read the posts and found many interesting topics. One day, one contributor went off-topic, releasing an anti-Christian sensational story more convoluted than the Da Vinci Code. I asked that hate topics be removed from that forum, and got a barrage of messages against me. Accusations of narrowmindedness and defending clergy who abused children were among them.
I reiterated my reasons for the request: (a) the story was based on speculation, not history, (b) it was "Christian-bashing" in general and (c) it was off-topic within the forum. After a few calming messages, tempers cooled. The forum was never the same again. All those members who wrote nasty things reflected on how negative their reactions were in relation to the "wellness" topic. The forum disbanded after six months.
Bashing has become commonplace in social networks. Many teens have contemplated (and commited) suicide due to attacks to their dignity on MySpace sites. Negative hurtful comments and opinions fill the video pages in YouTube. That is the price of freedom of speech.
The medium of Web 2.0 is not the problem, because it simply provides the forum for exchange. For all the benefits social media give to connecting people, these technologies help more than hurt.
Nonetheless, my wish is for a proper use of media that does not degrade the dignity of any individual.
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