My favorite word right now is abundance.

This might come as a surprise if you’ve read my previous posts about less. Topics I’ve discussed on the blog include less commitments, less material items, less media consumption and less digital communication.

The explicit meaning of abundance is a large quantity of something. That’s not what attracts me to it.

a-bun-dance

I like the way it rolls off the tongue. it bounces. the first syllable, ə, like an exhalation of pleasure. the second, like blowing a kiss. bən. the third, a dance.

I like the implication of it. Abundance may mean a large quantity, but if you meant a large quantity, you’d say that. Abundance implies gifts that are continuing to give–its earliest roots are Latin for “overflowing” and “from the surge.”

Lower on the list of definitions: plentifulness of the good things of life; prosperity.

Not having to want for anything.

Abundance as a Mindset

When I have a large quantity of physical items, I feel chaos. There are things everywhere. When you rid yourself of the excess and shift those items to orderly and easy to access spaces, you have abundance.

The same goes for a heavy mental or emotional load. The same tasks that can lead to burnout can feel enriching with the right time management, systems, environment, community, and balanced cycles of rest/work.

A large quantity, or too much, turns to abundance when you filter out what isn’t in line with your top priorities and then you leave the rest in just-right boxes, either in literal form for physical objects or time boxes for tasks.

Rewiring for Abundance

Scarcity

My internalized sense of scarcity presented itself in collecting broken, not-quite-right, potential “projects.” While others would plainly see these items as trash, I saw instead what they could be.

Noble as this may seem, the act of collecting potential projects—yet not creating time to commit to actually do the projects just lead to… Hoarding. Not in a certifiable, get-this-chick-on-tv kind of way–nothing that interesting. Just a messy basement, really.

Regardless, hoarding is done with scarcity in mind. The act of collecting something unused is saying to yourself: “I can’t pass on this because this my be my only chance.”

This collection of potential is what bogged me down.

Dismantling

Tools that helped me move forward from a scarcity mindset:

• My local gift economy. This resource allows me to donate things that otherwise may not have had another place to go. It helped me shift my thinking from “getting rid” or “trashing” an object to sharing or gifting it to someone who will appreciate it more. It also made me feel like all that I want tomorrow could be posted for free! Why clench on to old possibilities?
• Thrifting. I’ve always been an avid thrifter. My shifted attitude from the gift economy allows me to think the same way about donating clothes to a local thrift shop. Instead of thinking about the money I “wasted” by “giving it away,” I’ve reframed my thoughts toward the excitement I feel when I find a good thrift, and imagine gifting that feeling to someone else.
• Square footage. You can have a lot of stuff or you can have a lot of space.
• “What am I doing with what I’ve got?” This is a helpful frame of mind. I can’t treat all things with the respect and care if there are too many.
• Drowning. “You can’t save the rainforest while you’re drowning” –KC Davis I wanted to believe I was a hero for not putting stuff in a landfill, but I was just keeping a landfill annex under my house, near my laundry area.

Detachment

True detachment feels enlightening. This is a new feeling for me, but I’ve relished in it over the last month. There is a lightness to my days. I’m no longer attached to results and the process is the source of my joy. I feel gratitude knowing that abundance will continue flow, so I don’t need to hold on tightly to expectations or to anything at all.

For years now, I’ve meditated on detachment during my spiritual practice and morning routine. It just hit me on a deeper level than ever, and I never want to turn back.

Where I Love to see Abundance

My favorite place to experience abundance is in my garden. I started gardening for mental health and to save the world a few years ago, and it delights me to see a diverse abundance of resplendent life when I look through my window or walk outside.

I love to feel the warmth and abundance of having a quick exchange with a stranger: a reminder that I am not alone. Connection is one step away; community is built brick by brick–and look at the abundance of bricks!

Books. Lots of books.

Time. Rest. Play. Art. Colors. An abundance of laughter, good memories, joy. An abundance of love.

Abundant means Plentiful

Plentiful rolls off the tongue–it really rolls. Plenty-full, just enough, more to come.

Abundant.