I’ve had a very quiet Sunday so far. I woke up, went back to sleep, then woke up again. Got up, harvested strawberries to deliver to my folks before heading off to my last BodyFlex fitness class for the year, then went for a long walk around the park with my sister-in-law and my two nephews, and when i got home, i made a delicious lunch of poached salmon atop fresh cos lettuce from Emma’s garden, snow peas, capsicums, cherry tomatoes, avocado, toasted sesame and cumin seeds, finished with a simple dressing of lemon juice and flaxseed oil. Sounds good ay? 
Sitting there with my large, fresh, nutrient-dense plate it got me to thinking. How on earth is it that i can have access to all of this? Think about it, the meal itself could have served two if i had wanted it that way, and it could have been less fancy with perhaps canned fish as opposed to fresh, but salmon happened to be on special this week. Vegetables in some countries cost the earth, whereas i had most of the ones in this dish given to me for free. And the taste! Oh my goodness, how delectable!
I recently learnt that the human brain, although mostly made up of water, is also made up of omega 3 fats – 10% of it in fact. That sounds like a whole lot to me. It is easy to understand why we need to ensure we get enough of these essential fatty acids into our diet, otherwise our poor old brains will be starved. I also learnt that the average american barely gets any omega 3′s in their diet at all, and that the ratio of omega 6′s to omega 3′s back in the days of the caveman was 1:1, but now it’s more like 50:1. How scary is that? Not only are we NOT moving anymore, like we were built to, but we are also suckered into eating processed convenience foods that are lacking in the basic building blocks of our organs.
Nice.
So, as i was feeling pretty grateful this morning at firstly being able to actually use my legs to get around (no chance of this frame becoming inactive any time soon!), but as the day went on, the abundance that surrounded me in my access to clean air, fresh water (Christchurch’s water systems have now recovered and we’re back to drinking pure springs from the tap, woopwoop!), full and complete nourishment and time to enjoy it all really had me feeling even more blessed.
I sometimes feel that i’m always on the look out for more. More of what? Well, everything. More work, more free time, more coffee cups, more money, more apple gadgets, more friends and loved ones, more air miles, more knowledge, more shoes, more inspiration, more creativity, more spiritual connections, more holidays, more dreams to be fulfilled….more abundance.
However, if i look simply at today, one very quiet December Sunday, i see that i have much more than many in this world, and even though i will continue to strive to further myself, to obtain more of whatever it is i’m seeking and to live more abundantly for the sake of my future family, i really am very grateful for the abundance in which i am already living.
But how can we be greatful in times of terrible loss. I have had a miscarriage which required surgery to finish the process – how can I be grateful?
Hi Sarah,
That’s a great question. I’m sorry for your loss…i can’t imagine the pain and sorrow you must have gone through in losing your unborn child. When it happened to my brother and his wife, it was indeed devastating. But the blessings that followed that crisis were great – they were able to have another beautiful wee boy who made it into this world, healthy and shining. I’d like to think there is a reason for everything, even if we aren’t privy to the wisdom behind the things that happen in life. Who’s to say what life would have been like for your child should he or she have been born? Did your surgery go well? Was the surgeon able to do his or her job in a way that eased your (physical) pain? In my brother’s family, they felt grateful for the fact that they had had a chance to grow as a couple in the face of adversity and loss, and they felt encouraged at the thought that their little one was in a better place. If we look at life as a series of crises and victories, there will always be hope in the face of suffering, like that old saying “this too shall pass”.
I am grateful to you Sarah for bringing such a stark truth to my reality – i’m sure many mothers have been there before and would love to hear your thoughts on how to cope. What steps have you taken since?
Wishing you an all-abundant life, full of better times.