Wisdom of balance

In primary school, we were taught about the need for balanced diets to grow well. A diet that was balanced contained all the nutrients in the right proportion.

A diet could have all the nutrients but until these nutrients were in their right proportion, that meal was not yet balanced.

An unbalanced diet is a threat to the life of the one who eats such. Even though it may contain nutrients, food with nutrients in the wrong proportion is unbalanced. When food is unbalanced, it can easily pass as junk. People put their lives at risk when they feed on such.

Similarly, in life, there are right and wrong proportions. It is great to rain, for example. The rains are almost always a blessing to everybody. When it rains in the wrong proportion, however, it leads to flooding no matter how great our drainage systems may be. Properties are destroyed and lives are lost.

We need money, for instance, to do a lot in life. When we have money, we can save lives. In other words, in the absence of money, lives can be lost.

However, when we are ready to sacrifice everything for it, lives can also be lost. People need to draw the line between when money is a need and when it is greed. It is all about the right proportion.   

Growing up, one observation I have made about life is the observation of balance. Balance can separate good people from bad ones. It can give people opportunities others have always been denied because it is an indicator of our maturity. Balance is so key that it can actually be the determining factor of our destiny.

In life, there is a fine line called balance. Many fail in their bid to walk on this line because it takes a great deal of wisdom to. Balance is like trying to keep so many things in both hands while doing everything within your power to prevent any of them from falling.

Without balance, servants rule their kings. Wherever there is no balance, there is abject poverty. Nations endowed with innumerable resources will always be on a begging spree if they cannot draw a line between their wants and needs.

 It is this imbalance that has brought Africa, for instance, on its knees despite all its blessings.

Balance makes us avoid waste. It prevents us from depending on our resources excessively while guiding us to avoid under-utilising them as well. Balance helps us to apportion our time well. We make space for entertainment while making time for every other interest as well.

I have observed great people come tumbling down from the peak of life because of an imbalance in their lives. They spent more time and money on things they should have spent little on.

The dreams of some young people who had great potential never saw the light of day because of an imbalance in their expenditure.

You need to know when to save and when to spend. Saving everything and spending nothing will make you look unhealthy. Spending everything and saving nothing will make you look helpless in your day of need. Inasmuch as you spend, be certain you are saving. Balance your life!

People who disregard the essence of balance disregard their own lives. In fact, in balance is life because imbalance can take away lives. For instance, one can die from unbalanced drinking. If they do not know when to draw the line between moderate and excessive drinking, they are gradually digging their graves.

Balance applies to all areas of our lives and we must be intentional about it. In our spiritual lives, we need balance. We need to know when to fast and when to dine. In our careers, balance is a must. Our lives become lopsided when there is an imbalance.   

Exercise, for instance, is great but until we know when to exercise and even what kind of exercise to do, it will do us more harm than good. Some have lost their lives exercising when they looked just fine without it. It is a matter of balance.

In balance is wisdom. In balance is the truth of life. For instance, you need to pray but it should not be at the expense of work. You can pray for all you can but if you have not sown any seed of hard work, it is like pouring water on a rock and miraculously expecting crops to germinate out of it.

Wisdom is knowing when to do what. The right thing done at the wrong time is considered wrong. We could be the greatest in our careers but if our families are suffering for such, then our service to mankind is no service at all.

We could as well be the greatest family people but if we are not excelling in our career, we become bad models to our children. Like a scale, we need to balance our family and work so that none suffers because of the other.

We must be intentional about living in balance. Moderation is balance and balance is life. It separates the wise from all others. This is because it takes a lot of tactfulness to live a life of balance.

 Nelson Mandela went to prison and came back to lead his people. Balance will make one know that not everyone goes to prison to become another Mandela.

Balance must be everyone’s goal. When there is no balance, we chase our dreams with little or no regard for our health. If we do not live in balance, we end up as parents who spend all their lives buying presents for their children when their children only need their presence. Students who lack balance leave school without any soft skills. In a corporate setting where there is no balance, lasting relationships are not forged.

Balance is to walk in the middle of a road that has two extremes on each side. Live in balance. Live in wisdom.

Kobina Ansah is a Ghanaian playwright and Chief Scribe of Scribe Communications (www.scribecommltd.com), an Accra-based writing firm. His new play, IN THE PANTS OF A WOMAN, is a musical themed on rape showing this April at National Theatre.