About Abundance

Welcome, 2014!

I'm thankful to have 2013 behind me.  It was a year filled with ups and downs, and last night was a definite low...but in a way, it directly ties in with my word for the year.

The past two years, two friends and I have chosen a focus word for the year, instead of setting the usual New Year's resolutions.  My first word was purpose, as I strove to figure out what my personal purpose was, along with the reasons behind some situations and struggles I faced.  Last year, I chose fit as I worked to not only fit in to my new town and life but also to create a healthier me.

As we approached the end of the year, I started tossing around ideas of what my new word should be.  Love?  Perhaps.  Patience?  Hmm.  Focus?  That one had promise.  But one what would I focus?  As usual, I felt torn in many directions...finances, writing, health, what?  All?  Then it really wouldn't be focus - it'd be whatever it is I have going on in my head all the time anyway.

Then it came to me:  abundance.

But it's not what you think.

The definition of abundance is:

A great and plentiful amount
Fullness to overflowing
Affluence; wealth

It is all those things but it is also the opposite of something I struggle with:  negativity and scarcity.  It's so easy to feel like you don't have enough, aren't enough, the list goes on and on, even when that is clearly not true in all aspects of your life.  It takes conscious effort to remind yourself that you are enough, you have enough, but that is the point of focusing on abundance in the coming year.

There will be very real struggles in the year ahead.  I can see some on the horizon even today; some will come as a complete surprise.  There will be more highs and lows.  But focusing on abundance doesn't mean pursuing more (or better) all the time.  Instead, it's about focusing on the fact that I have enough - money, love, happiness;  the list could go on and on - even when I have less than I'd like.  It's about balance.  It's about moving away from the negativity, the feeling of lack to gratitude for all with which I am blessed.

Let's do this thing.