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200 words, abundance, contentment, desires, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, enough, greed, joy, Necessities of Life
“Enough is abundance to the wise.” – Euripides
Photo credit: nbmaa.wordpress.com
Have you ever thought to yourself, “If only I could get _____________, that would be enough.”
Have you ever then attained that which you desired?
Was it enough?
Or having grown accustomed to this new level of possession, have you wanted more?
Do you think if you get more, it will be enough? Or will you want even more?
~
When I got my first apartment, my parents allowed me to take my bedroom furniture. I leaned a mattress against the living room wall and threw myself into it when I needed a couch. I built a bookshelf with bricks and planks of wood. My end table was a plastic crate. I never expected to have what my parents had at the time, what they’d worked hard to have. I knew I’d have to work for that. I was so happy in my little apartment. Life is so good when you have enough.
~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~
Do you define abundance by the measure of your possessions?
Or do you define abundance by the measure of your satisfaction with the wealth you already have?
talktodiana 
Sometimes I feel like my possessions own me. I’m in the process of purging and keeping only important or useable things. It’s hard to part with things, but it is also liberating.
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and honestly, it’s been my experience that when you get rid of stuff you don’t really need, you don’t miss it.
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So true – I have unloaded a ton of crap this week 🙂
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I have never measured success by monetary means – and not only because I have so little! 😉 At the same time, I am a touch eccentric and a bit fussy about what gives me satisfaction and peace of mind, but I believe it’s okay to love a lifestyle that wouldn’t fit for everybody.
I remember when my first marriage ended and I had cardboard end-tables in my new apartment. But I was happy!
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You are my soul sista!
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Interesting post because over the weekend when I was lamenting my material losses to my son, he described how it was in his university days (when he had nothing) that he felt most free. Whilst I knew what he was saying was true, it is natural that we all want a higher degree of comfort than those ‘make-it-do’ days of our youth. I suppose it is all a matter of degree and where each of us draws that line between ‘comfort’ and ‘extravagance’.
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Very well put Elizabeth. Knowing where that line is and examining our own circumstances by where we’ve placed that line seems to be a growing theme here.
Diana xo
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Hell, enough is my whole theme song. Being enough is the theme of many of my stories, having enough–do I? guilt over wanting more…is much of my blog.
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I don’t think you need to feel guilty about your desires and needs. I guess the question I’m asking is, is there a point when there is enough? Or would a person then keep wanting more? Make sense?
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I understand what you’re asking 🙂
I just wonder if the “more” I want is really a product of wanting to keep up with others. I’m warm, not hungry, I have stuff to read, I have friends…I honestly think we should all think about it, evaluate what we want and why every so often. Not because we should all live like monks, but just to be aware, kwim? 🙂
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So true, it’s what Ian was getting at too. I realize that I have to ask myself this question as well.
Also, I’m supremely proud of myself for figuring out what kwim means! 😉
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🙂
It’s definitely a question worth asking, and worth exploring.
Oops, sorry I should have written it out, Know What I Mean? 😉
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it’s ok I figured it out! 😉
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Love the post! less is more.
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Thank you surprisebjg! Glad you enjoyed this post. Hope to see you here again.
Diana
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Great topic, Diana, and an awesome topic to reflect on.
I used to define abundance by my possessions, and no, it was never enough. I really thought that if we got a bigger condo, new furniture more of this or that, then happiness would increase as well. A bit embarrassing to admit, but I didn’t know what I didn’t know.
Once I realized I’d missed the point entirely, that abundance was a feeling not a physical possession, I became content with everything I had. In fact, I realized I had too much meaningless stuff and that de-cluttering was necessary.
Upon moving to Korea, we sold everything, stored 2 medium sized boxes away, and vowed to stop collecting meaningless crap.
We have less now and are happier than ever.
When we place our expectations of happiness on the outside it’s a fruitless and never ending quest. in my mind, it’s only when we look within that we can see happiness and abundance in everything.
~Andrea<3
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Love this comment Andrea – especially the last 2 lines! Thank you for sharing your experiences in this area.
Diana xo
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Wise reminders Diana. It’s great to think back on what we started out with and how happy we were with it. Do we really need more possessions to obtain more happiness? I think not. Wonderful post. 🙂 Cheers, Gina
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Thanks Gina!
I’ve been down-sizing bit by bit for quite some time now and I feel like I can breathe easier.
Diana xo
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so true…
they say that when you let go of excess possessions you have more.
the space that is created is the gift.
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I love that! The space that is created is the gift.
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🙂
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I should add: I was raised in an 1-bedroom apartment in Waterloo, ON with 5 children. Parents scraped together to buy a house when I was 10.. So yea, I guess we lived on very little stuff (and I don’t know how my housewife-mother stayed sane).
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Ok that’s a little tight! My mom had to share a bedroom with many siblings too so her big thing for my brother and I was that we should have our own bedroom.
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I have stuff spread across 2 cities – Vancouver and Calgary. Moving across Canada/US to live somewhere can be a major wake-up about “stuff”. Life indeed can get complicated. So I whittle down slowly and..hope no one is going to give be knickknack gifts. I can’t display this stuff. I have problems with canvass stacks of my own art….
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I can imagine! I’m not a fan of knick knacks either.
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I had a wine crate as a table and a basket from a Soho vegetable seller to put my shoes in. I loved it. Simple but different.
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sounds so Bohemian – love it!
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omg! A Milk Crate? Was it? Was your end table an up-ended milk crate (which also doubled as a record storage device; ). Dating myself BIG TIME here…
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haha you know it! 😉
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Ha! Right on!!
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My first apartment was on top of a store and it leaned but it was big with hardwood floors and a clawfoot tub. I LOVED it. Didn’t have much money but boy, there are some great memories! I think I realize more and more how if you’re not careful, your stuff can own you instead of the other way around.
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Yes, a great way to summarize this point Brigitte!
Diana xo
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I have absolutely had enough but now you have given me a new definition of enough – thank you Diana!
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Jules, you are an example of courage and strength to me!
Diana xo
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Well it is mutual!
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Too often we treat “enough” as a comparative word. One can feel like they have enough when what they have is more than others around them.
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Yes. Ian I think you’ve hit on something here. I know that I do this. The question I pose to myself though, is why do I do this? Because when I don’t do this, I recognize enough as abundance…
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I had a bookshelf made out of planks and bricks, my brother’s hand me down sofa, and a brand new stereo system in my apt when I was in grad school–nothing was new but the stereo and speakers the size of Japan.
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haha! Japan is a small country but would make a big stereo!
Diana xo
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