SIG MANAGER’S THOUGHTS by Jane Smith, SIG Manager

Greetings SIG Members,

Sometime during the last week, a technical communicator friend said that she’s heard that English is the most metaphorical language. While I can’t categorically refute the statement, I pondered it, thinking about Japanese, Chinese, and other languages that are based on pictographs or complex characters. I recalled one of my favorite books that I read before going to Vietnam, Catfish and Mandala, by Andrew Pham. While reading it, I was struck by the wonderful metaphors he used and the amazing pictures he painted, and I wondered if his writing reflected a more picture-based thought pattern. No answer, of course – just a thought. Yet as my friend and I continued our conversation, we became aware of the metaphors that litter our everyday conversations.

Since that conversation took place, I’ve thought about the many metaphors we use to describe our daily lives. How many of you have said any of the following sentences or phrases? “I feel like I’m just juggling too many things right now. I’m having trouble keeping all the balls in the air.” “I wish I could get off this roller coaster (or merry-go-round).” “Welcome to my three-ring circus.” “It’s a balancing act, all right.”

That last one – balancing act – has many meanings. For most of us, it conjures up balance beams and teetering and other similar images. From another perspective, however, the balancing act is one of balancing one’s life. At this time of year, we have an opportunity to bring back more balance into our lives as we take vacations, play Frisbee in the park, swim outdoors, or just take time to laze about in the sun. For the rest of the year, how do we balance our work life with our personal life? How do we take care of ourselves so that we don’t get out of balance? If we’re out of balance, our work and creativity suffer, yet we think we’ve got to work hard at work. We don’t always just let it flow.

Although I’ve never been a gymnast, I did do a ROPES course once. While the first three ROPE activities were truly ropes that I walked across in one fashion or another, often with side ropes for support, the final activity took place on a log about 8–10 inches wide at the top, 20 feet long, and over 20 feet off the ground with a ravine below. Yes, I was in a harness, yet the fact remained that there was a 20-foot space between the ground and me. My task was to walk across the log without holding onto any wire and without falling. I approached the log with trepidation, yet also with a sense of relief in this task being the final one before my slide to terra firma. I tentatively took a step and teetered. I found my balance once again and took another step and teetered. On my next try, I took three steps in a row and discovered that I felt much more sure-footed when I took those steps without thinking. With that discovery made, I walked the length of the log, not thinking about each step but sure-footedly walking across and with the log – to the cheers of my buddies already on the ground.

Why am I recalling all this? Because I’m realizing that balance is not an act of effort. Balance is an act of flow, of allowing, of trusting, of being, and of experiencing all that is. We do that more easily in the summer when, for most of us, the weather allows a greater sense of spontaneity and freedom in our activities. And some of us carry that ease with us much of the time. Yet many of us work hard at balance and struggle, just as we work hard at our jobs and exhaust ourselves.

My wish for the summer:

As we enjoy our summers, may we find a sense of balance that we can easily bring with us into the rest of the year, allowing the flow and integration of work and play to nurture us rather than to exhaust us. In that flow, we bring creativity and fun into our designs and courses.

Have a great summer!