Change, Balanced Life, This Happened To Me
With Park Swinging, I Become A Pendulum; Movement With Freedom
Winds of Change
Written in response to June Life Prompt: Restoring inner balance during the winds of change. Yana Bostongirl pockett dessert.
Pumping legs back and forth I am free, I can fly Leaving south, favoring North Like a bird in mid-day sky My vision expands out of range Through a park swing view; winds of change — by Marilyn Glover
I am relaxed, calm, and cool, swinging back and forth on a neighborhood park swing.
Moments earlier, I loaded my one-year-old grandson into the front seat of the double swing — my daughter’s mini-me, my mini-mini-me! 👶
Who would have thought that time spent swinging at the park, something so simple, could be the perfect potion to remedy my inner cries for balance restoration?
But it was and will continue to be my reset button.
The last two years have brought many changes into my life. First, a sudden splenectomy and pandemic onset forced me into isolation, wiping out two sources of employment — the hurricane of my life.
I could never have prepared for this storm.
However, I managed. Sheltered in my home, I remained safe, making the most of my resources, never squandering them.
Then loneliness set in my apartment; minimal human contact — my private deserted island became depressing as I longed for my old life.
But a miracle arrived during this time, the birth of my grandson — I caught glimpses of a rescue boat in the distance.
Still too far away to predict the vessel’s arrival, troubled waters would veer the ship off the path a time or two before anchoring at my feet.
Ah, yes, the winds of change; they blow in like gusts knocking everything over, then settle like a morning breeze singing a lullaby.
Back and forth we go; Life is like a swing.
So, I continued swinging that day back in May, back and forth with my grandson in tow. Little Lennox giggled a drawn-out “Ayyy,” and I echoed the words beaming from ear to ear.
Mesmerized in a trance-like state, I drifted to my childhood and my bright red backyard swingset. She was beautiful with two swings, a trapeze, and a see-saw; I wonder how many miles I pumped out on those swings through the years!
It was freedom in movement, my calm in every storm.
Reunited with my carefree childhood days, I embraced such sweet memories like a long-lost pal. I remembered imagining that I could fly and thinking about how I once believed flying was not limited to a flock of overhead birds or a seven-forty-seven. No, not even the first season take-off of a kite or the lonely balloon slipping through a little one’s fingers, drifting high above treetops.
In my days of youth, I flew, too, never limited by the boundaries of an active imagination.
My epiphany moment freed me from the remnants of the hurricane, the storm that tried to wash me out to sea a couple of years ago. But, I did not realize that I kept holding onto a lifevest I no longer needed. So, I deflated my flotation device and watched the compression force it into space — flying away, and so did I! 💡
Freedom With Movement
Ahh, that swing back in May will forever be a life-changing moment!
Back and forth, the swing carried on.
I recall Lennox turning around in his seat. His eyelids were heavy as a light wind ruffled his curly golden locks. So ready for dreamland, his aura was contagious; I felt a flash of spiritual enlightenment wash over me as my grandson and I continued reaching for the sky.
My thoughts changed. Suddenly, I imagined a giant pendulum. Yes, perfect! I looked up to the top of the swingset seeing the similarities between the parkside play equipment and a pendulum, also commonly known as a timekeeper or metronome and associated with modification; transformation.
At that moment, I became the pendulum, finding a new direction.
My game-changing moment arrived.
Common pendulum uses are keeping time, beat, religious practice, and dowsing.
Yes, in that flash moment, I realized that a park swing not only was a source of comfort, a cradle hugging my grandson and me, but it was a reminder of knowledge acquired during my childhood. Indeed, in life, nothing is constant, but no matter what troubles blow my way, I am capable of rising above, flying high in spirit. 💡
Also, I can take a new direction; my point of no return.
Partnered with my pendulum insight, I knew that the storm of my life was nearing her last kiss goodbye!
I thought of my pendulum collecting dust on a shelf back at my apartment. Furthermore, I recalled the lessons learned from sessions on the pendulum back and forth motion.
A pendulum’s back and forth movement is called oscillation.
This swing, this pendulum, gave me a gift; the forth of back and forth.
Yes, the furthermost reach of the swing each time Lennox and I swung forward symbolically was a pendulum guiding me to move onward to new destinations. With each pump of my feet and forward movement and every, “Ayy” from a mouth of a babe held a message: You are ready to move ahead. You weathered the storm, but now you must step out into the new horizon. Although time is elusive, you have reconnected with your past, present, and future. Your wings are restored, your weight is balanced; time to fly again!
And with the lightning moment, my feet stopped pumping. Then, finally, Lennox and I glided while the park swing slowly came to a stop.
I put my grandson in his stroller and walked away feeling more awake than ever despite the lulling motion after-effects of a swing.
Since that day, Lennox and I have made park swinging time a routine. His face lights up every time I say “Bye-Bye,” and he can almost say swing; “SWI, SWI, SWEE,” he says. 👶
The winds of change stop for no one. Sometimes change is as subtle as a breeze; other times, it resembles the high-power winds of a hurricane ripping through our lives without mercy.
This is life.
As I have learned, all things resettle as storms surely pass, but nothing remains the same. In the quiet, we reflect and wonder; however, we must never become stuck hanging onto our painful past. Time doesn’t freeze. We shouldn’t either. No, we must pick ourselves up and step forward, continuing on our journey, holding onto the promise of a rainbow with clearing skies.
And while it is true that there will always be another storm, somewhere, someday, one mustn’t lose sight of the greater vision; peace with freedom.
Yes, life goes round and round sometimes; it all feels a bit too back and forth.
A swing, a pendulum — they go back and forth too!
Movement with freedom; swinging sets me free, and I become a pendulum pointing myself in a new direction.
The storm clouds are gone now. I am on a new journey. I will fly wherever spirit guides me, and when the next storm rolls in, I will be better prepared to navigate while remaining balanced among the winds of change. 🙌
