Finding Balance

by Michalee Merritt

A friend I met in a Jewish Leadership Academy/Community Leadership Initiative year-long class ran her first board meeting this past week. She shared with our cohort how she started and ended the meeting. She opened the meeting by asking her board members, “How do you find balance in your life?” She ended the meeting by asking them, “Moving from Summer to Fall – what feeling or memory do you want to hold on to from summer as we move to the new season?”

This really got me thinking about how I find balance in my life. I know what I need to do on a daily basis to be an effective parent and spouse. I have realized that I cannot do everything that I am asked to do. I have learned limits, how to say no. If I can’t give 100% to something, then I am not going to do it. I have learned that I need daily walks, yoga, a good cup of coffee and time to read a book. 

I have so many thoughts as we transition from summer to fall. I look forward to putting my house back together after the chaos of summer travel and kids in and out of the house. I fall clean, not spring clean! I look forward to the high holidays and planning what I will cook. I look forward to being able to spend more time at my synagogue at services and learning. I want to keep the feeling of laughter and spontaneity that the summer brings.

I want to hold on to all the memories that I have had with my family this summer.