Drawing by Jesse Graber

My husband Jesse has been having fun with this piece on his sketchblog. He keeps adding things, the latest being the elephant on roller skates.Who knows how tall it will be before he’s done, or what kind of pile up will occur when he can no longer keep his balance on top.

Life can feel like a precarious balancing act at times.  Many people are juggling many things and pile ups do occur. Our minds can often race every which way, causing us to feel frantic, anxious, restless, making us long for “peace that surpasses all understanding” promised by the writer of Philippians in chapter four.

On Sunday I will offer some reflections on what I’m learning about mindfulness, that ancient practice of becoming more awake to the present moment. I’m NO EXPERT on mindfulness, but part of my daily discipline includes doing something called Headspace. For about a year now, I have taken anywhere between 5-10 minutes a day for this mindfulness technique. Sometimes even that amount of time seems WAY TOO LONG.

Riley Long performing for the neighborhood children during Hotdogs in the Park

Now that I think about it, it might be wise to have some reinforcement on Sunday. Maybe, just maybe, I’ll convince juggler extraordinaire Riley Long to assist in this exploration into mindfulness. Don’t worry Rosi, I’ll tell him to leave the flames at home and I promise I’ll keep him away from the beautiful organ.

Feel free to comment on your own balancing struggles or your own mindfulness practices. And if you are a juggler, let me know!