get to know our FRND robin vieira, and the importance she puts on finding balance in her life, in a short film by max rhulen & gomacro. ⁠

a film by max rhulen
produced by gomacro
words by robin vieira
photos by max rhulen

It’s 2020, and the world feels upside down to most. What is balance anymore? How on earth do we find it? I’m still trying to figure this out- but I can tell you I am certain we can no longer reliably find it how we used to find it. I’ll be honest, when Max and I filmed this video, it was February 2020- right before chaos hit and covid took us away from our sense of “normal.” Since then, we’ve experienced the tipping point of more complex social, environmental, political, and economic issues than I thought could go down in 6 months. It seems the new “normal” is chaos and uncertainty, and it all seems out of balance. 

It’s taken time, but I’ve slowly grown more comfortable with the fact we are living in a new era of balance- one that looks entirely different to us, and one we likely have not experienced before. So, where does running fit into this for me? When we filmed this video, I identified strongly with being an Ultra Mountain Runner. Now, I’m not so sure- if I am that, or honestly, if it even matters anymore. I love being in the mountains, and running long distances in the mountains, running up mountains, running down mountains- I do it all to find balance. Covid times are helping me realize I run because I am feeling unbalanced. Running restores, even for a brief moment, a sense of balance in life. Moving with breath, body, proper fuel, air, trail, trees- it’s all in order to find balance. I know not everyone has access to trails and mountains and fresh air all the time- but we do have access to our minds, which allows us to choose how we want to wake up each day and face the unknown.

It’s not so much about the gorgeous scenery and perfect trail conditions, but rather about doing something every day that helps restore your sense of balance. Yoga. Meditation. Time with your dog. Facetiming your family. Making a good cup of coffee. Choosing to nourish your body with good food. These are the things we get to call certain in our lives right now. These are the things we have control over. These are what we can focus on in order to find balance.  

So- as you watch this short film, I invite you to consider ways you can invite small batches of balance into your life during these unprecedented times. For me, biting into a protein bar, or putting a cap on my head are small acts of certainty I use every day to ground myself; as evidence that I am lucky to place two feet on the ground every morning and get out of bed; as reminders that we are free to feel all the highs and lows of this process. At the end of the day, we are fortunate to watch our world as we once knew it morph into the world as we know it now, and eventually into the world we will come to know very soon. 

Keep running friends, in whatever form, way, and place you can. Keep finding balance and hope, and keep sharing your light so others can do the same.