sta⋅sis
[stey-sis, stas-is]–noun,
plural sta⋅ses  
[stey-seez, stas-eez].
1. the state of equilibrium or inactivity caused by opposing equal forces.
2. Pathology. stagnation in the flow of any of the fluids of the body, as of the blood in an inflamed area or the intestinal contents proximal to an obstruction.

[link] - [Dictionary_^dotcom]

Here's a word with a hell of a lot of connotative meaning compared to a surprisingly short definition. Only two (abridged) denotations, or dictionary definitions. I won't talk about the medical half tonight. It is somewhat irrelevant, but nevertheless noteworthy. It shows that this word is useful, and used; but only to an extent.

To be honest, stasis is one of my favorite words (which just goes to show that the most complex or unique things aren't always better). It's one of those words that sounds just like the way it means. I cannot explain this experience, but it's part of how I determine the worth of a particular word. Each and every word has an emotional value, if you examine it. More on that another time, perhaps.

Now then, let's take a look at the first denotation of the word. "...Opposing equal forces" sounds kind of like something right out of a physics textbook. Boring. Almost bothersome. When in the world have there ever been two forces which are actually (INTERMISSION: [link] Enjoy. Now then, back on track..) balanced and nullifying eachother? There's always a constant war going on. And the way I see it, wars are more akin to tides. That is to say: one side seems to be ahead, then the other. The tide doesn't just sit at one place, static; it's always changing.

CHANGE. It's what we voted into office, isn't it? We stopped the stasis in office. McCain had a nickname, McSame. See how easy it is to shine a light of bad connotations on a word? (Just add politics!)

Tangents aside, we don't see much stasis in our world. Too many variables and fluctuations. Stasis. On a worldly scale, change is always needed. Nature won't stay the same, so we must always be learning to adapt to it. A static environment tends to just rot. A pond of stagnant water will almost inevitably breed mosquitoes. And nobody likes mosquitoes.

Now then, let us take a different perspective. I favor stasis in day to day life. "No surprises" is how I'd love to live my life. Just settling into a cute little daily routine. Write down a single schedule and KEEP IT THAT WAY. No worries on the idealism, though. I'm doing what I can to get to a reasonable level of it. I've got this game going Wednesday nights (though this week's ran late) and a host of other weekly/daily activities. Unfortunately, I can't possibly keep track of what happens on a given day between 4 and 9 PM. On school-days, those hours are like the only time that I would hope to have my own standard of organization. But no. I can't possibly. It's hectic and chaotic. Yet I still hold the idealism of a static system. Of a peaceful one, even.

My final point: Equilibrium. A perfect balance. You take everything you can, and pack it into a system. At the end, you come out alive, wholesome, and centered. That's equilibrium, in my mind. It's all I strive for in life. "Now I've got friends that ride into the storm and ride out of the storm with nothing they rode into the storm with" (Counting Airplanes - Train, one of my favorite songs) To be honest, that song sums up a lot of what I would say in this paragraph. Go listen.

Stasis: How I'd love to find it.

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Trust me, it was worth it.