ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

 by Sarah Hiner

During the Passover Seder a song called Dayenu is sung that recounts the story of the exodus from Egypt.  Translation of the word “dayenu”?  “It would have been enough.”

The lyrics of the song talk about how each step along the Jews’ path from Egypt and throughout their journey to their holy land would have been enough… if the Red Sea were parted it would have been enough… If they were given manna to eat in the desert it would have been enough …if they were given the Torah but not gotten to the holy land it would have been enough…  There are 15 steps in all that would have been enough.

So my question to you is “what would be enough”?  Are you someone who appreciates what you have and the simple things in life or are you waiting for something to happen in order to be happy or satisfied? And how do you strike the balance between striving for improvement and reaching for something beyond without sacrificing gratitude and happiness in the present.  

I spent a lot of time with my nearly 92 year old mother in the past couple of weeks. She’s not as physically active as she once was and her memory is waning, but she is happy in her life and never complains about her reduced performance.  Being in a wonderful independent living facility surrounded by people and activities and having children who call and visit her regularly is “very enough” for her.  She is a model for how to age gracefully.  

Similarly, my town has a lot of people who are scraping by financially, working multiple jobs in order to pay their rent and to buy food. They are grateful to have work and someplace to live even if it’s far from being a palace. 

Meanwhile humanity is full of complaints about what isn’t enough for people…

• Not enough respect from family, friends or co-workers
• Not enough compensation for a job being performed…even from some who choose not to work full time or in the office
• Not enough quality in work performed by others
• Not enough good weather (“Raining again?”…”It’s too hot”…)
• Not enough time 
• Not enough “fairness”
• Not enough personal space

But, is there really not enough? Somehow humans always want more, but what would be enough? Have people been so spoiled by creature comforts and immediate gratification that we have forgotten the sacrifices made before us?  In the land of Amazon on every doorstep and a private bedroom for every child, people have forgotten that large families were raised in small two bedroom homes and that once upon a time you pumped water from the well rather than selecting from the endless display of designer waters at Whole Foods.  

It is stressful to never be satisfied… for nothing to ever be enough.  To always wish that your clothes were fancier, car was faster or house was bigger.  You’ll never be happy if you’re not present to what is enough. 

The constant hamster wheel of wishes is physically, mentally and emotionally exhausting whereas acknowledging and appreciating the present fuels those same physical, mental and emotional pieces. No wonder taking a moment for gratitude is so healing.  It calms the body, the mind and the soul to look around and appreciate even the smallest of things – the sunshine peeking through the clouds, the warmth of your home when you come in on a cold rainy day, or the fact that we are able to fly (It really is quite remarkable… even today). 

Having enough is not the big and the complicated.  In the end the rich and the famous die in similar sad and sickly states as the poor and unknown, and often in sadder and sicker ways.  

Take a look around you and see what you really have.  Human connection.  A reason to get up every day.  Satisfaction at the end of the day. And appreciation of the beauty around you.  

To me, that’s more than enough for a happy life.

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