Holiday Spirit and Scarcity

(Photo courtesy Delish.com)

We are nearing the great feast of Thanksgiving. What does it mean for you? Family? Friends? Football? Parades? A day off?

Originally, it was a time to celebrate all the abundance we have. The abundance of food. Our initiative and hard work to place that food upon a table. Family and friends to share in that abundance. It was communal and thankful.

It is interesting that the theme of abundance pervades this holiday yet we have made it a hallmark of scarcity. You are probably thinking I am way off the mark with that remark. Scarcity? Hardly. But let’s look at what this bountiful holiday spirit has become.

There are some retailers who have jumped  into Thanksgiving as a prequel to Black Friday. Now, while you eat your turkey, you can check your shopping list. You can load up on carbs to propel you through marathon shopping later in the day. The deals are time limited. You don’t want to miss out on all the SAVINGS.

Scarcity driving fear.

Instead of the holiday spirit of abundance, there is the anxiety of fulfilling that list.  And, who gains? Well, you … you can save big dollars on stuff. Stuff. Things. Wants. What marketers want to sell to you. Big abundance for the marketers.

And what do you lose?

The abundance of time spent with family and friends. The sharing of a meal meant to celebrate the harvest of the year. Something so earthy and genuine you cannot price it. The simple joy of a meal.

Which version will you pick? Abundance or scarcity?

A Summer Muse

As I sit here typing and hearing the chirps of chickadees and cooing of mourning doves, I am pondering the cycles of time. I do believe that I am a summer soul. I “wake” up in spring and, like a seedling, make a mad dash to grow and flower for the season. The summer nurtures my soul.  Summer rain smells like an energetic perfume. Lush colors entertain my eyes. And life’s abundance is apparent in all the fruits and vegetables. There is physical manifestation of bounty. I am beginning to sound a bit like a pilgrim, but the connection of man to the earth is viable and visible in summer. At no other time, for me, do I feel that deep chord of synchronicity with God, Universe, or however else you want to describe a higher power or state of being.

It’s those connections that move men (and women) into action. To produce. To create. To build. All the dreaming and best intentions don’t manifest until there is action. It is a simple one-to-one correlation, move and manifest, and repeat until done.

Yet, the biggest challenge to that simple rule is fear. What if it fails? What if it succeeds? What if I am not the right person? What if I am all wrong? All these types of questions erupt and upset that momentum. You know what I am talking about, and I wouldn’t write about this if I weren’t so intimate with the subject myself. The unknown entices the mind, body and soul, yet that same unknown evokes fear to block our pathway. Yes, it is that “Good news, bad news” joke.

So what do you do?

You’ve probably heard the adage “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” It’s true.

Because it is summer and I am feeling my creative juices flowing, I signed up for a blogging class with Chris Brogan (affiliate) and a book recommendation is “the War of  Art –  Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles” by Steven Pressfield.  I read it. It moved me into action.

Is it really that simple?

It might be if the following is true for you: Do you really want what you want bad enough so that you are willing to be honest with yourself? Can you give yourself permission to be authentic? Can you kick your self-critic to the curb permanently?

While I can hear most of you saying “Yes, Yes”, consider what you will gain if you do, and what you will lose if you do. For example, if you are truly willing to kick that self-critic to the curb permanently, you gain the freedom to create as you will and you lose that voice that tries to keep you safe. Wait … what was that? Keep me safe? Yup, the self-critic’s job is to keep you safe, safe from harm like other people’s criticism, situations with which you have no experience and might be bad. The self-critic keeps you just the way you are. You may not like it but it’s the safe way. Think about it. That internal voice advises you based on years of keeping you safe from harm. Are you ready to jettison her or him? If the answer is still yes, then you are opening the door for that authentic you to enter center stage.

Now, go read Pressfield’s book. Sign up for Chris Brogan’s class.  Me, I’ve got some tomatoes to pick in the garden. Catch you later.