The Foundation

One of the first things I discovered when I moved to Central Mississippi was Yazoo Clay.  It’s soil so expansive that it destroys both buildings and roads alike.  Add moisture and it expands.  Dry it out and it contracts.  A foundation built on this demon soil will soon crack apart, wrecking anything built on it. It’s like dog poo except without the value.

Yazoo Clay runs in fingers. One house can suffer from it while the neighboring one will be fine.  Homeowners curse it. Realtors dread it. And construction companies make a fortune off of it. You dig a hole in your backyard, pour in your life savings and cover it back up — only to have to come back and fix it again.  Recently, we made solid fix to our home’s foundation.  And it got me thinking how fixing a foundation of a house is a great metaphor for life. How you have to take care of the things that aren’t seen to really live a good life.

Our lives are like houses built on Yazoo Clay.  Bad times — dry times — can cause our lives to sink. If we’re not anchored to bedrock, to something solid, then we just float with the whims of our day to day lives.  Our lives crack and then break apart under the stress. It seems like we spend so much time on the superficial. On what is seen by others and we neglect our foundations. But it doesn’t matter how fancy the structure is, if the foundation isn’t solid, the structure will crumble.

Here are the steps for fixing both a house foundation and a personal one.

1. Call in the “Engineer.”

The House: People will tolerate a few cracks in their sheetrock or a few doors sticking. But serious foundation problems can cause busted water pipes, broken masonry or worse.  At that point, you contact a structural engineer to come out and measure the house, to see how much the foundation is off level and to make recommendations on how to fix it.

The Person: It’s amazing how much we tolerate in our lives. I call it the comfort zone — change is so amazingly scary that people avoid it to their peril.  But there comes a time — whether it is health problems, a job loss or a spouse drawing a line in the sand — when you realize your personal foundation needs to be fixed.  At that point, you call in the “engineer.”  The engineer could be a doctor. A physical trainer.  A financial counselor. A member of the clergy.  Someone to take your hunch and put hard numbers to it and to suggest a solution. Go to the doctor, and she will suggest you are 25 pounds overweight and need to go on this specific diet. Meet with a physical trainer and he will tell you that you’re out of shape and need to this workout plan to get your heart rate down.  A financial planner can help you organize your finances.  Call in the expert.  Turn the gut feeling into a set of facts.

2. Find Good Company.

The House: Find a good company to do the work.

The Person: Find good company to support you when you do the work.  I’ve always heard you’re the sum of  your five closest friends. I thoroughly believe that. Surround yourself with people who can inspire you and believe in you while you are making the changes in your life.

3. Dig to the bedrock.

The House: Dig pilings deep to the bedrock so the foundation can rest on a solid footing. Otherwise, your foundation will continue to float with the whim of the Yazoo Clay.

The Person: Set your personal pilings on your core beliefs. Believe in SOMETHING.  Faith is a good place to start. Have a set of principles that guide you during good times and bad times.  Not having guide lines to live your life by is like sailing without a chart and a compass. You’re at mercy of the wind.  Set goals. Have standards. The Bible says it well in Matthew 7: 24-27:

The Wise and Foolish Builders

²⁴ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

4. Jack it up!

The House: At this point, the construction crew will level the house — but beware, things will break during the leveling. Pipes will come detached. Windows will break. Boards will comes undone. Shingles will warp.  Just remember these are all minor inconveniences and short-term pain for the long-term gain.

The Person: When you “level” your life, there will be things that change.  Some friendships will end. Others will blossom. Things built on a broken foundation will be affected by your fixing the problems in your life.  If you are out exercising, you might miss some of your favorite TV show. Or you might not go hang out with the guys at the bar if you’re at home for family game night. Be prepared that every change brings forth more change. But in the end, remember you’re fixing your foundation and that your life will forever be changed for the better.

5. Have a good warranty.

The House: You’ll have to make some minor adjustments in the future. Make sure you have a good warranty.

The Person: Sometimes, your foundation might slip, settle or change. If it does, make the necessary adjustments and reset your footings back on bedrock.

6. Make it beautiful.

The House: Go back in and repair the damage.  Fill cracks, caulk gaps and repair masonry. It’s foolish to do this before you stop the movement. But now that it is level and solid, make your house as beautiful as you can be.

The Person: Go forward and fix your relationships.  Build a great life based on your stable foundation.  You’ve gone through the pain. Now fix the cracks. Live life to its fullest. Make it as beautiful as it can be.