The Yin and the Yang of Life

Life has a way of giving back, everything we give. With interest.

I have read that if you give, with a giving heart, without expecting anything in return, 'this' is what happens.

It happens in small ways each and every day. A brief exchange with a cashier in a store or someone who you pass on the street. Whether it is a cheerful wave and a smile or a few words. When given freely, it comes right back to you.

I have a neighbor that has eyes that twinkle with his smile and he remembers my name. As we cross paths often on these streets of ours, he has often turned my day around with his effervescent smile and cheery greeting.

I remember those who are strangers to me, who have gifted me with a compliment out of the blue. Or simply said something to me that lifted me out of a blue moment and into the present.

I see it in my little daycare family. Those moments of pure joy when they smile from their heart and I reflect that back to them (or vice versa).

It happens in little ways and in big ways.

When I am feeling positive and chasing my dreams I think I give off a little bit of that 'effervescent glow' myself. I can feel it in my heart. I can see it in the reflection of the eyes of those I talk with.

When I am doing that-which-I-was-meant-to-do in my life, I am full of life and I feel good about the path I am on, I feel like I am giving a little bit of 'something' into this big, scary world.

While I am on that path, I can feel the comfort, joy and companionship of those who join me for my ride. This ride is most joyful when it is balanced with me finding the other person's truest self and listening just as much as I am talking.

There is a yin and a yang to the giving and receiving.

Sometimes a person is in a place where they simply need to absorb, listen and receive. Other times, they may need to spill their heart and empty it of that which is weighing them down. It is wonderful when that evolves into a spot where that person is finding their true north and starting to find a path that feels good, safe and comfortable.

Feeling 'safe' is necessary. I need my safety nets. They used to be financial ones. Now? My feeling of safety and security comes from family and friends who I trust with my heart and my soul.

I have dreamed big dreams and chased a few. In the sidelines, I can hear the voices of those who cheered me on.

Have I given back, that which I have received? That question sits within my subconscious mind and constantly beckons to me.

I live out loud. I write about it. I open myself up and let people see what makes me 'tick'. And ... rather than feeling frightened and vulnerable when I do so, I find people opening up and trusting me in return.

The give, the take. The yin, the yang. The ups and the downs. Life is a bumpy ride and it is hard to sit back and enjoy it when you are hanging on for your life.

I am in a very good place at the moment. I feel like the past six(ish) years, I have been a roller coaster car, fighting to get to the top of a steep incline. But rather than holding on for dear life, as I crash to the bottom, I have found a little oasis up here at the 'top of this mountain', that is filled with wonder. Little hills and valleys and nooks and crannies to explore at my leisure.

This post got so sidetracked I forgot where I began.

I was inspired by a little daycare incident where I offered my parents financial compensation for some days that I took off (which were not a part of my regularly scheduled holidays). I wrote this in our newsletter that I just distributed and wondered "How can I afford to do this?". I did it anyway because it was simply the right thing to do.

This is the reason I started to write this post.

I did the 'right' thing and offered a refund to my daycare parents. And yesterday? One of my previous daycare families returned to me. This little girl is in kindergarten and only needs to come every other day. But her return will more than compensate for that-which-I-thought-I-could-not-afford.

Little things.

They happen every day. We just have to keep our mind and eyes open and it is amazing what morsels of goodness we can find within even the worst of days...