The Law of Balance

I contemplated the implications of my 14 year old daughter being exposed to a horror film last night in the dorm house of her school – I had to really lean into why I don’t allow my kids to watch these films and also what the spiritual reason and implications are, so that I could express my concerns from a place of deep knowing and clarity. This is my process of discerning and today it took me back to a download I received years ago that I’m understanding more and more as The Law of Balance.

I’ve always believed in The Law of Balance. I believe everything must be balanced in order to be free. And when it is unbalanced it invites in an equal and opposite response to restore balance. Like a pendulum swings. Once pulled in a direction – it cannot become centered again until it has swung in the opposite direction. And while we are in the energy of the pendulum in either direction – we are not free.

The trouble with pendulums is that once they start – it’s hard to stop them. And the more extreme the stronger the opposite expression. In political circles we see it as backlash. Shifting perspectives can create a lot of turmoil and chaos when it happens quickly and all at once. Children learn about this from the simple activity of a swing set. And if you’ve ever jumped off the roof of a house or from high up in a tree on a rope swing – you know the thrill that will come next. An out of control, can’t be easily stopped, hang on for dear life kind of experience. And once engaged there is little freedom to exit the swing. Unless of course one is willing to jump mid air risking life and limb. Which some do. Choosing to experience the opposite reaction of gravity. Which balances the swinging momentum. Taking us out of right to left unbalance into up and down and more quickly back to center.

As I contemplated the ramifications for my daughter of watching a horror film – I noted that it is designed to manipulate the viewer into a place of fear. The opposite of fear is love. So of course after a viewing fear inducing horror film one might find themselves feeling more in love with those around them. And I’m certain that on some level the girls all bonded over the experience of watching the film together. A perfect teen bonding cocktail.

And a perfect date movie maybe. And to the degree that love and sexuality are entangled – we could draw the conclusion that horror films, fear in general are enmeshed with increased sexuality. Maybe fear and violence in general are deeply rooted with distorted views of sexuality. And even the commingling of violence and sexuality as we find in many expressions in society today.

And so The Law of Balance (very similar to the law of relativity) is a spiritual law that if we are mindful of it, we can navigate. By never becoming extreme or fanatical. By always striving for balanced perspectives – we can avoid the thrilling or terrifying experiences that follow. And also in a way we can avoid the high highs and low lows that come from being imbalanced in how we walk the earth and navigate life. Regaining our freedom.

I feel like everyone to some degree is on a pendulum swing unconsciously. And also unconsciously exposing themselves to more and more pulls toward one way or the other that exerts energy on the swing – launching us into what some perceive as life. It’s amazing how many people go through life like they’re in a pinball machine believing it’s all out of their hands and that they must get knocked about here and there at the whim of “life”. Many can’t recover, choosing to hide in a corner and stay stuck. Because they got trapped in the labyrinth of the machine.

Watching the vibration we attune to is very important. When sound is introduced to sand on a table the sand marches into an order that matches the vibration. It can make a beautiful pattern. And if you don’t want to be a part of that pattern – you would need to be the grain of sand that aligns with a different vibration. It’s not always easy to get out of a situation that is attuning us in a certain way. We’re attuned by our family, our neighborhood, our school, our work, our society, our place of residence, our friends. And when we leave our environment or align wi to a different group, circle, way of being – we can shift in a new way. We can find a thread that can carry us into a new reality out of the momentum of the place where we were. We would have to be very astute in our observations in order to step out of powerful vibration. Group think is real. Pack behavior. Trends.

And so it becomes very important to pay attention to where we are putting our energy. Where we are contributing to momentum. Leading voices like Gary Zukav and Eckhardt Tolle say that if you participate in the intention you will also participate in the outcome. The outcome of many intentions is to start a pendulum swing. And so it’s important to be ready for both ends of the pendulum before you jump on board. And also not to put any energy on situations that are trying to hook us into their drama and chaos if thats not what we’re consciously choosing.

Today I am realizing that my daughter is too young for the pendulum swing from fear into love and potentially if the environment is right, sexuality. I’ve never been a fan of scary Halloween activities for kids. I always strive to keep Halloween reverent and beautiful in the way of Celtic wisdom of veil crossing and the Mexican celebration of Dia de Los Muertos. And I won’t be OK with horror movies for kids either. It takes them out of their balance and they are not ready to navigate the strong pendulum of fear and love. Just like I wouldn’t intentionally expose my child to the pendulum of alcohol or any other manipulative hook that could pull them into a hard knock life.

Balance for me has started to look like – equal healthy and organic foods to sweet treats, processed and even the occasional junk or fast food. All things in balance.

Were not media free with our children – we’re conservative in what we let them watch and we unpack programs and films together. We’re weary of manipulative media. I don’t tend to watch any television anymore. And I also don’t drink any alcohol – although it’s not forbidden either. I choose not to get on those rollercoasters. I’m careful where I align myself and while I’d love to see change in the world – massive shift all at once might not be the way. The world seems to be a bit of a round ball. PSA: it’s not flat. Tread lightly and stay centered. Avoid falling in one direction or another and especially when in crowds. Stay free. Balanced.