Going in circles

Last night, teaching class, I had an insight into a problem that the group was struggling with. It had to do with maximizing the area inside a rectangular enclosure. Sort of on the fly, I illustrated on the board how any geometric shape with a given perimeter will have a greater area inside that perimeter the closer it comes to looking like a circle. A long, narrow rectangle will have a smaller area than a square one will, given the same total outside measurements. Then I said - take the same outside measurements, and shape the figure into a circle, and you get an even greater inside area. Oooh... it works. Try this at home, kids! You'll see. :)

So what does this have to do with anything? Not too much, I guess, but.. it's an example of how I have fun in the classroom. :) Just as in singing jazz in a club, or in leading worship, I practice my teaching ahead of time, but enjoy improvising in the moment to have a greater impact. It's kind of similar to a performance. I want to connect with the "audience", help them appreciate the material, and if changing styles or delivery does that...

Circles. Something else about circles..

Oh, yeah. I heard a quote the other day. Kind of eastern-y but it sort of works. It goes something like: "life is a circle: you're sometimes at the top, sometimes at the bottom, but always in motion." Hm.

Does it seem to any of you that there are seasons in life where the movement from top to bottom, or the motion in general, seems to happen really fast? That's what it's felt like for the last month. Top to bottom in a real hurry. Two years ago, the same thing. Seven years ago, the same thing. The way down happens quickly.

But the way back up to the top of the circle goes pretty slow. Maybe instead of a circle, maybe life is like one long roller-coaster ride. Some long pulls up to the heights, fast and scary runs to the bottom, some freakishly high-speed curves, and some slow straight stretches where you can just regroup and remember where your stomach for all this went to.

Is this just my life? Or is everybody's life like this? Are there people whose life is more like a kayak trip in a river, going at their own pace, paddling when they feel like it, drifting at other times, pulling to shore and having a picnic lunch and a nap before they get back in and keep going? Can anybody relate to that kind of life?

Oh, I know, even the kayakers will encounter some narrow places in the river, some rocks, some rapids.. and they may get wet, overturn, pick up some bruises.. but, mmm, those placid times of drifting and gazing, and the peaceful tenting on shore! I guess when you're stuck on the roller coaster and you get motion sickness... the slow paddling life looks pretty appealing.

I'd trade some thrills for some peace right now.