Hold the Center

Life can be long or short. Pick your poison. Either way, our legacy is typically supported by a solid foundation. I mean the things we consider safe and familiar. Specifically, family and environment. These constants define us.

I’m sure you’ve heard this before. Self-esteem and personality are inextricable from one’s upbringing. Values, along with the assumptions of strengths and weaknesses, are filtered through memorable experiences throughout our lives. As are our most impactful thoughts and feelings. So, to be healthy and whole throughout much of the process we should have peace at the center. We must empower ourselves to tighten the screws in areas where we are most readily influenced. Again, I mean at home, among extended family, and those immediate surroundings beyond our front door. But many of us are adventurous. Come what may, we stray from our cultural settings to challenge the world on our own terms.

In due time we can become strangers even to those most familiar with us. Resultant envy, resentment, and misunderstandings can eat away at our bonds with family and friends if we let them. So, about face! Hold the center. Practice honest communication with friends and relatives. Let’s see to it they are reassured. Reciprocate love, support, and encouragement any way you can. Be there. Much of our own happiness and integrity comes from how we acquit ourselves in the role of someone’s ‘loved one.’ It is our duty to hold the center. Though too many to mention here, the advantages which stem from this are our birthright.

Lastly, let’s make sure we contribute to the health and efficiency of those environments where we live, work, and play. If we go staggering about, noncommitted and tripping over our own words and feet, we are not helping. At all. When people see you, they should see everything they love about their neighbors, colleagues, and relatives. And when we see them, we in turn should see none other than ourselves along with affirmative results of a sense of accountability.

But if you would rather take on the world all alone and without firm roots, look forward to being blown away whenever the wind stirs. Furthermore, you’ll find that there is no such thing as a day when the wind does not blow. In other words, it is possible to lose yourself to a ‘personality’ assumed while entirely alienated from your center. So, just remember, home is where the heart is. And at the most basic level, a healthy heart is crucial to the circulation of sufficient nourishment. Swallow your pride if you are estranged from a loved one. For all intents and purposes there is no tomorrow. You can never be sure how much longer they will be around. Take the first step and give them a call. Hold the center.

If you need someone to talk to, you can always call the Mental Health Hotline at 866-903-3787. Or if you feel like a threat to yourself, call 988.