So when, in our ever-evolving achievement-oriented society, is enough is enough? One of the reasons we keep getting into debt is because we’ve bought—hook, line and sinker—our culture’s selling proposition that bigger is better and more is necessary. But what if we just stopped and took that thought apart for a moment?
What if having that black cashmere sweater—even though we have a similar one hanging in our closet—just ties us further to things we don’t want to do…like working harder, like stressing over our money with our spouse, like blocking the hours we could be spending at something creative? What if, at some point in our evolving as an adult, we just stop acquiring, and start enjoying?
What if ‘having enough’ means something different than acquiring things?
Here’s what having enough means to me, after a number of years of living debt-free: I have my energy in things I love. I’m not tied to a job I hate to pay bills I resent having to pay. I’m clearer about what I want to spend the simple amounts of money I have. I know what my luxury items are—the ones that mean the most to me—and I save for those and don’t waste my money spending on objects or items I’m never going to use or don’t mean much to me. I’m healthy. I love my husband. I take a great vacation each year which we pay for in cash. I bike ride, I walk, I make art, and though life will always throw me a sidewinder from time to time, there’s very little drama in my life of my own making. I have enough to eat, enough to wear, and enough good health to enjoy the goodness of just being alive. That’s having enough.