Building a foundation of stability in my life

I love travelling, experiencing life for all its worth and in essence – never staying in one place for too long. Early last year, the only guarantees in my life were 1. Committment to my job, 2. Paying off my mortgage, 3. Looking after my dog… all else was up to chance and inflections of spontaneity.

I loved getting away to Sydney for the weekend, escaping to the Hunter Valley or flying down to the cultural hive of activity in Melbourne for a few days. To be honest – ‘anywhere but here’ was a very appropriate dictum in my life. Nelly Furtado’s song ‘I’m like a bird, I can fly away’ was almost the perspective I afforded myself, to grow wings and fly away seemed my ultimate objective.

I can look back on those 12 months and see that I was very much affected by the ‘escape mentality’: The inherent belief that the grass will be greener on the other side, life on the edge will be more glorious and more adventurous than the daily grind and that getting out of normality is the only way to truly experience life… I was wrong

I found myself in a continual search for something more satisfying, trying to carry my mind and thoughts into some sacred place which never actually existed and tried to escape what I thought was ‘suburban captivity.’ The truth is, stability in our lives is the only grounding we have to lead a balanced life, for without stability we are constantly running, constantly striving for something more and we never truly have the chance to know where we are, who we are or where we are going.

This year, I have purposely tried to avoid those trappings which dissilusioned me for so many months last year and I have found that grounding myself in a church, connecting with people, creating a stable environment at work and making a concerted effort to build a life in my own home, suburb and city has given me a greater satisfaction than I could ever have imagined.

At times we need to loosen up, to give ourselves unto the reign of spontaneity and change our environment, however I still believe that unless we have a stability and foundation in our lives, all attempts for fulfillment will be in vain.