ABUNDANCE

    I went with my mother-in-law, my good friend and her mother to the Brown Palace for Mother's Day Brunch yesterday. It was superb! I had been conscientious of my caloric intake for days in order to allow myself the pleasure of eating whatever I wanted at this feast. And I did. I enjoyed boiled shrimp and crab legs and a seafood salad, along with a spinach salad and a croissant for my first course. Then I followed that with a pancake, 3 strips of bacon, some roast pork, hash browns, potatoes au gratin, asparagus and a cheese blintz for my second course and then pineapple upside down cake, bread pudding and strawberries with chocolate fountain sauce as my third and final course. I washed it all down with delicious mimosas, decaf coffee and water. I enjoyed every single bite and worked hard to stay in the moment savoring the flavors as they tickled my taste buds.

    What struck me as sad though was how guilty everyone was feeling about eating all that delicious food. It was as if they didn't feel they deserved to be there enjoying the feast. It wasn't just at my table either. As my mother-in-law and I walked past another table for the 3rd time (desserts on our plates this time) the women seated there made a comment about how "sinful" it was to enjoy ourselves with this wonderful food. How they would not need to eat for at least a week after this. "Aren't we terrible," one said with a little wicked smile. It took me aback as I became aware of person after person with the same attitude towards our bounty. But not I, for I was loving it! Then I realized the culprit. The old Puritan virtues this country was founded on were getting in their way of enjoying the experience to the max. The virtues of making sacrifice and taking vows of poverty were pervasive in that beautiful opulent hotel. What a bad habit that attitude has become for so many and how unfortunate. For it indicates a belief that God doesn't want us to enjoy ourselves each moment of every day and that if I have abundance and enjoyment someone else has to suffer. I prefer to believe in a Source of All Good who can and will provide everyone abundance in all areas of their lives. For as Jesus said, "Ask and it is Given." Yesterday was an example of the abundance of our Universal Creator and the pleasure we can receive if we allow ourselves to relish in and be grateful for that abundance.

    So for me today I say, Thank you Divine Source, for the bounty that was laid before me yesterday. For the farmers, ranchers and migrant workers who made the meat and produce possible, for the truckers, grocers and warehouse people for transporting and preparing it for the market and to the chefs and servers for all their hard work in making the food so beautiful and scrumptious. I am thankful for the lovely music that serenaded us, the pleasant company that I enjoyed immensely and for the prosperity the Creator has given me so that I may enjoy such a magnificent bounty. No sadness, no feeling of lack, for yesterday was an experience of pure ecstasy! Just the way my Creator wants me to experience and enjoy my life. THANK YOU GOD!