The Land of Enough

 

Tired of having a full closet and nothing to wear? Recently, I tried an experiment of putting only 40 of my favorite items of clothing on hangers.  Turns out, I never tired of my wardrobe this whole, long winter because everyday I wore things I loved.  That’s the standard to use throughout my household, my relationships, and my activities.  When I’m engaged with people I love, doing what I love, in clothes I love, I have enough.

We experienced enough with my grandparents. There’s a photograph of me, seven years old, in a scarf, shawl, and big pocketbook on my grandparents’ couch.  My three year old sister, also in costume with a huge purse, sits beside me.  We are playing “Bus,” looking at the scenery, chatting, and exploring the treasures in our purses. This ingenious game was no doubt suggested by a grandparent in need of quiet. That couch wasn’t the only special prop. We played “Waitress” with their TV tray on wheels and “Bank” as we knelt before a straight chair with slats for the teller window. 

My grandparent’s house had one doll and one box of crayons and my sister and I got along better there than anywhere else. At our own house we had a play kitchen, dozens of baby dolls, Barbie dolls, a doll house and every game produced. Yet I have few memories of playing with my sister there. Mostly I remember squabbling.

At first glance this doesn’t make sense.  Wouldn’t we be more likely to fight over a single doll than the dozens at home?  But it didn’t work that way because siblings rival for attention, and at Grandma and Grandpa’s we had two loving adults’ full attention. Even when she continued her housework, meal preparation, and gardening tasks, Grandma included us so that we felt it was all play. 

Geneen Roth has observed that enough isn’t a quantity but a relationship to what you already have. Margaret Bullet-Jonas writes that you can never have enough of what you don’t truly want. When I take the time to discern what I want, it’s rarely a thing. Most often it’s a connection to an old friend, a hug, a chance to talk about a new inspiration, a walk in the sunshine, or time to read a good book.

Experiencing enough is a spiritual discipline because it’s never my spirit that wants more stuff. Though it seems scary sometimes to walk away from more, focusing on the riches already in hand is what nourishes me truly.