Finding Balance

We recently came across a video from Daily Stoic entitled ‘How Stoics Find Balance in their Life’. From time to time, we find ourselves searching for that seemingly elusive work-life balance, so we watched with interest.

Do you know what we discovered? Apart from considering how the virtues Daily Stoic unpacked would help in our quest to discover the perfect harmony between work and life, many of the virtues also applied to our time with needle and thread.

The stoics believed that one of the keys to a good life was balance. Not too much and not too little of any one thing, or the right amount of the right thing at the right time. They saw that this balance was where individuals tended to be at their most happy and were maximising their potential.

In regard to our time with needle and thread, we found ourselves wondering if it was possible to have too much of that one thing, but as we recalled fingers on the verge of blistering, cricks in our necks, strained eyes and a family enquiring about when dinner would be on the table – again – we realised that indeed it was!

When you take a good thing too far, it ceases to be a good thing.

As we watched on, with needle and thread now front of mind, we considered how some of the other virtues the Daily Stoic mentioned applied to our stitching.

Low Lows can Lead to Higher Highs | Similar to the adage of making lemonade from lemons, when we’re able to take the difficulties stitching sometimes throws our way yet continue to lay stitch after stitch through to completion, it’s possible our appreciation of the final result is enhanced.

Enjoy this Moment | This was a reminder to be present in what’s before us, to focus on the meditative push and pull of needle and thread through fabric with each stitch we lay, all whilst being grateful for the time we get to spend with needle and thread no matter what else is going on around us.

Little is Needed for Happiness | When Rufus, an ancient Roman philosopher, was exiled from Rome, he realised how much he’d taken for granted as he questioned whether he’d actually experienced Rome while he was there. For us, his experience serves as a reminder to appreciate our time spent stitching, as it’s the appreciation of our time with needle and thread that ultimately creates the joy we experience.

For us, the thoughts Daily Stoic shared reminded us that when our needle-life balance is in place, when we persist with the difficult stitches, are present and grateful during our time with needle and thread, the moments we stitch will always be enough. We’ll find we’re able to concentrate and enjoy the laying of each stitch and don’t need to be anywhere else or doing anything else, we’re exactly where we’re meant to be at that point in time.