Abbondanza abbastanza 🍋
Post-capitalism practice in the spirit of abundance
I sit again at the westernmost edge of the Mediterranean, staring out across the sea toward Palestine. I sit again with the heavy weight of grief, this time accompanied by an apprehensive hope instilled by a ceasefire. A ceasefire, the colonial powers proclaim, though they refuse to cease the fire.
It’s been a year since I quit my job and flew to this stunning island we call Sicily, or Sicilia. An island that knows far too much about colonial fire, but radiates a spirit of love and interconnectedness nonetheless.
In Upstream's 2024 Solstice Celebration, Manda Scott said:
“If we don’t know what we’re replacing [capitalism] with, and if we don’t live from and embody a different value set, none of [Erik Olin Wright’s “Four Types of Anticapitalism”] matters. … In order to move any of these [types], I think we have to create energetic and conceptual framing change. People have to be coming not from scarcity, separation, and powerlessness, but from…a sense of genuine bone deep connection to the web of life.”
Despite millennia of colonization and its tenets of scarcity and separation, Siciliani—by and large—seem to maintain a “genuine bone deep connection to the web of life.” This has been demonstrated by~~
🍊 citrus trees growing along the streets (thanks to no botanical sexism!)
🌋 reverence for Mount Etna
🌊 the clean, clear sea
☕ generous gifts of fruit, espresso, amaro, and more from people we just met
🚶♀️a very different relationship with the concept of “private land” (from the US) and therefore affordable sea-front housing and the ability to enjoy buone passeggiate almost anywhere
🌿 plants—both for beauty and sustenance—adorning almost every balcony
🖼️ art of all kinds enlivening ancient stone buildings
🐌 fair prices for high-quality products, including an abundance of KM0 and Slow Food options
❤️🩹 instantaneous offerings of support from almost a dozen strangers when my puppy was lost in the rain (we found him ❣️)
🍝 an invitation to an elaborate home-cooked meal from one said stranger
🤗 and even now, as I write this, an interruption by two elderly women walking slowly with their arms linked who just wanted to say buongiorno, who seemingly see themselves as connected to me, these volcanic rocks I rest on, these waves that soothe our searching souls
I think of this as the spirit of abbondanza abbastanza, which a Sicilian friend explained as:
“we have what we have; what we have is plenty; and so we have everything.”
Abbondanza abbastanza reminds me of when I was organizing in Chicago. How the city’s Black radical organizers would lead us in a proclamation that “we have everything we need.” This was a dramatic reframing from what I was taught in public health school about “poor” communities in need of programs, services, my help.
All this to say, the “energetic and conceptual framing change” that Manda Scott suggests we need in order to embrace the post-capitalist ways that our lives literally depend on… it already exists. A framing of interconnection to “the web of life” can be found in Black-led community organizing spaces, in indigenous ways of being that have been preserved despite 500 years of genocidal efforts, in Palestinian steadfastness on one side of the sea, and in the Sicilian spirit on this side of the sea. And, increasingly, in me.
It hasn’t been easy to change my framing around work and money. For months I’d wake up anxious with messages in my mind like we worked so hard to come to this country for you to have a good life!! Why would you do this!? I felt the fear of my ancestors and parents who took risks and worked tirelessly for me to be wealthy, for me to be white. I learned (and I continue to learn) how deeply co-dependent I am with capitalism, how much white entitlement I’ve internalized.
Fear still lives in me, but through breathwork, being intentional about where and how I practice ancestral relations, connecting with others on a parallel journey, repeating affirmations in the spirit of abbondanza abbastanza, and remembering the countless people I’ve seen evoke this spirit, my “energetic and conceptual framing change” consistently evolves. Most days I feel myself becoming more prepared (I believe) to live in a world beyond capitalism.
If you’re longing to experiment with a new relationship to money and work, I hope this peek into my process is, at the very least, a reminder that you are not alone. There are so many of us on this journey! I see you in The River, on Instagram, here on Substack, in the mutual aid group, at the local makers markets, and elsewhere. We are many, and we are creating new possibilities.
And if you’re curious what work did look like for me in 2024, here’s a little document I had fun pulling together. As you can see, the spirit of abundance generates abundance, for which I am so grateful. Let’s collab if you see anything that piques your curiosity!
So amore, where’s your mindset in relation to scarcity & separation versus abundance & connection as we enter this daunting new year? Even if you can’t (yet) quit your job, how might you cultivate your own post-capitalist practices to support your breath and open possibility? How might you embrace the spirit of abbondanza abbastanza?
As always, I would truly love to hear from you.
With care,
Alyssa
RESOURCE SHARES
Personal transformation is a full-body and spirit experience, and I find that music helps me instill new frames. So, as usual, I created a playlist to help me embrace the spirit of abbondanza abbastanza.
I also listened to Liza Colpa’s Nighttime Abundance Meditation almost every night for probably 4 or 5 months. It helped soothe those anxieties that had a tendency to creep into my sleep state.
I hope these resources might serve your journey too. ♥️
this post is gold. thank you for sharing your authentic expression, nuanced insight and poetic perspective on the world. it’s a joy to meet a fellow spirit who seems to have fallen in love with the deep politics, generosity and enchantment of the mediterranean. i look forward to following your work!