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Reader question: Please explain “balancing act”, as in this sentence: Parenting is an endless balancing act. My comments: Have you heard of anyone saying: A mother’s job never ends? Well, that’s the idea. Being a parent can be a lifelong struggle. Or juggle, to come to the point of our discussion, because it is in many ways a balancing act. Like a juggler juggling three or five or more balls, being parents takes the same constant split of attention. On the one hand, parents have to take care of the children, making sure they grow up happy and healthy. On the other hand, they still have their own lives to live and lead. Therefore, the perfect scenario will be for parents do both jobs well at the same time – so that both parents and children get the best out of it. Perfection in parenting is out of reach in the real world, I freely admit, but you get the point of what a balancing act is. It is a process of doing several jobs at the same time and making sure all jobs are done well, equally well. Aside from the juggler, another acrobatic activity which describes the balancing act perfectly is the man walking the tightrope in mid air. Where being mommy and daddy is concerned, it is perhaps best to liken parenting to walking the tightrope. In midair, the rope walker is seen using a long pole to help him maintain balance. The job he has to focus on is to keep the central weight of his body on the middle point, i.e. on the rope. Lean either to the left or right and he will fall, leading to ruin and failure. | 
