Equitable Abundance

One conversation, a healthy conversation I should add, can provide insight, challenge thought patterns, and relieve the pressure of a jam-packed inner dialogue. Naturally, I enjoyed a portion of the weekend conversing with my older cousin on our childhood experiences growing up as a 1st-generation Nigerian-American. After a few laughs here and there, I had to learn his perspective of what abundance meant to him, and why it seemed like such a difficult concept to register.  

“It’s cause we’re Nigerian!” he quickly chuckled, but I could tell the seriousness of his voice at the same time. Our parent’s experienced the devastating effects of the Biafran War (1967). Though little words escaped their mouths of their story, we as their children, greatly felt the unresolved second-hand effects in our upbringing.  

“But wait!” as I challenged the thoughts crossing in my head. “I had all I physically needed”, yet why did I feel for much of my life that scarcity existed? 

This is one of the bittersweet facets of introspection. Bitter in the aspect of acknowledging, sweet in the recognition of a new opportunity for growth. The laughs previously shared with my cousin; our childhood gave room for memories pushed far back to resurface. As most of my childhood occurred in a single-parent home, I figured that experience was one of many possible causes for the breeding ground of emotional scarcity to thrive.  

At this point, I zoned out of the conversation with my cousin, and I further challenged my thoughts. If I recognize the scarcity mindset I’ve unwillingly adopted, how has this influenced the current areas of my life? As a Black woman in America, especially in our climate today, what does abundance mean for me without diminishing myself for society’s comfort? As a Christian, a heavily loaded term, what does abundance mean here, and how does this view alter God’s perception? Better yet, what indeed is equitable abundance in a world that profits on the contrary?

Adopting an equitable abundant mindset is dangerous. It’s a mentality that’s audacious. It acknowledges the timeline of our pasts and is unafraid to remember it as a point of reference. An equitable abundant mindset believes in thought and practice that there is room, more than enough room for all of us. It gives space to heal, unpack, question, and shift from scarcity to abundance, from deficiencies to fully-functioning. It demands and will do anything to ensure that holistic living exists.  

Thus, an equitable abundant mindset rejects any form of action, thought, leadership, icons, or policies that force itself at the expense of another. Fear does not exist here & scarcity no longer has a grip.  

The power of one conversation.