In Search of Better Metaphors
December 31, 2019

   Indeed, my cup runneth over – and over, and over, and over.  And I don‛t want to harbor any illusions here: this may not always be a good thing, or a useful one.  It may, in fact, reflect a regrettable waste if not handled properly. 

   But before I get to that thought, I acknowledge the bounty that I have, and I give thanks.  Abundance – indeed, overabundance – marks my life.  And in order to learn what to do with it, I must first see it as such.  I am grateful.

     So what‛s the problem?  It is this:  I have more abundance and responsibility in my life than I can reasonably enjoy and shoulder alone (and yes, I believe those two things – abundance and responsibility – are bound together).  My cup runneth over, and this one little fly has too many elephants on her plate, to shamelessly commingle metaphors.

     So what do I do about it?  I take Justin Rhodes‛s advice to turn an apparent problem into a solution – to see the opportunity in it.  What is the opportunity here?  To find new, more effective metaphors.  

    To view myself or my life as a single cup or as one fly receiving these blessings is to place limits on them.  I must, instead, see myself as one who shares this wealth and seeks partners to bear its burdens with me.  I already have some great partners, of course – Brad, my legal assistant Beth, my parents, colleagues in professional and community service settings, and even my kids now, as they‛re growing.  But what I really need is a different model, a different modus operandi, one by which I act and understand myself as conduit and not as respository, and as co-laborer rather than martyr to the mission.  Abundance that flows through me, as opposed to abundance that flows to me, will not stagnate or cease.  And abundance that flows through me alongside my family, friends, and neighbors – that is abundance, indeed.

     I suspect this is one of the reasons why the river is a central image in so many religious traditions.  So, River.  That‛s a good start.  I‛ll go with it.