Philippe Petit, our most famous tightrope walker
Good Morning, God!
I love this photo — as I loved the movie — for the JOY that Philippe took in his balancing feats. As I pondered my long — 40 day — trip, God, I thought of just how many good things we have to BALANCE in our lives. Really, part of the joy of tightrope walking must be that incredible focus on JUST ONE THING. TOTAL FOCUS! Talk about Mindfulness!
And Mindfulness IS important — essential? — to a life well lived. Yet, just like Philippe’s time between Towers — Mindfulness requires preplanning and logistics. Philippe and his team needed to carefully plan the break in and the setup of the wire. Hmmm. Planning and logistics are key parts of living a balanced life, aren’t they, God. They are skills that I WANT to develop.
I realized on this trip that part of good logistics is an accurate Time Estimation. Accuracy precludes “wishful thinking.” Logistics also means an awareness of limits — if THIS, then NOT THAT. There are other components that want to present themselves, God. One seems to be the selections of “how much” is needed. The idea that a small quick act at a key point can “save the day” — or maybe the relationship — is so easy to overlook. Yes! Like taking the time from a BUSY day to send off a “thank you” note.
What a deliciously overwhelming jumble of options our lives are, God! And THAT is the reason that prayer — stopping our busyness — stepping out of our world — holding out our hand, and heart to YOU — comes before even planning.
Aaah. My prayer times tend to resemble quick “thank you” notes. If I desire REAL CHANGES in my lovely life, I shall have to INVEST more time in DEEP PRAYER. Please help me, God, set aside TIME, not just to ASK for Your help, but to RECEIVE IT!
Filed under: a hand up, accepting my need for help, acknowledging my need for prayer, Balancing and adjustments
