I’ve been thinking lately about the relentless quest for self-improvement and what a sham and a swindle it really is.
Don’t get me wrong: I’m all for learning and growing. But this quest is something different – some shapeless, undefined notion that things could always be better. I could be smarter, thinner, better organized, and more accomplished. I could eat more healthily, meditate consistently, lift weights, do more charitable work, and work harder and smarter. There is, in fact, no part of my life which doesn’t seem to cry out for improvement when it is placed under the cold microscope lens of this quest.
Who told us that we had to live this way? When did we begin seeing ourselves (and others, sadly) as projects and fixer-uppers? Who told us that with a lot of work we might be – just possibly – barely acceptable? And who swapped our beauty spectacles for this freezing microscope?
So, my friends, I’ve had just about enough of that nonsense!
Today, walking by the lake, I thought, “I am rich in lilies.” Yes, the first water lilies are blooming, and their serene beauty delights me. Looking at them, I feel rich – just as rich as anyone who can buy truckloads of flowers from the florist. Really, is there a difference? The eye doesn’t distinguish what is free from what is costly. The eye only sees the beauty and loves it.
In that spirit, I wanted to share 10 ways in which, without earning another dollar or struggling or fixing myself, I am TODAY a Gazillionaire:
1. I am rich in lilies.
And in roses, peonies, pansies, crane’s bill, delphinium, iris, pine trees, birches, maples, and oaks. And in red and grey squirrels. And in deer in the woods and groundhogs and bears. I live in a place of incredible natural beauty and peace.
2. I am rich in friends.
I love my friends. I love all the differences, the variety of gifts and temperaments, the spectrum of intimacy, the spaces where we fit into each other’s lives.
3. I am rich in chances.
When I was first starting to perform, I used to say that all I wanted was chances to do my thing. Now, opportunities flow to me quite naturally, and that makes me feel like a gazillionaire. When I first started to think about chances, I happened upon this strategy: I saw everything as a chance. That attitude led to more chances. And hence to feeling rich.
4. I am rich in encouragement.
People have been incredibly kind to me, and it moves me and fuels me. Like so many of the best things in life, encouragement participates in magical math. You receive it and then turn a half turn and give it away, which somehow means you end up with even more than when you started.
5. I am rich in ideas and inspiration.
The world seems to offer more and more inspiration to me, and my own sensibilities go to work on all that juicy stuff, almost without my conscious direction. I always told my writing students, “You can trust your mind and your senses, if you open up. You’ll get what you need.” I think this is true of all of us!
6. I am rich in instruments and tools.
Harps, piano, flutes, beautiful pens, great journals, a room of my own… I feel like a lucky duck. My dear friend Cynthia Chatis taught me once how important it is to have the right tools, and how much they can enable you to do your best work. Just glimpsing these treasures makes me feel a wealth of possibility.
7. I am rich in education.
Here I think of Michelangelo who said, when he was very old, “I am still learning.” Me, too. My education is a wonderful building with many rooms that open onto great vistas of pleasure. Some of those rooms I have barely explored – and how I do love doing so!
8. I am rich in my senses.
They deliver me to such joy, such a depth of experience, and the possibility of meaning and connection. I give thanks for my senses every day.
9. I am rich in trust.
This grows and grows, especially as I grow older. Trusting myself means I can try new things and know that, at the very least, I’ll survive to tell the tale! Trust is the first step in every journey I take.
10. I am rich in tea-bags.
I include this one because it speaks to the things we have in our cupboards and might overlook. For a graphic illustration of abundance, look at your spice collection or your tea collection, or even all the extra toilet paper you’ve stashed under the stairs. Creature comforts, a stock of extras, clean sheets, a closet full of chai – all of this makes me feel rich.
If YOU are feeling rich today, I’d love to hear about it! Send your list, and feel free to make it as long or as short as you like. And I’ll say to you what my dad used to say to me,
