The DO Book Club, Sept. 2025: ‘Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy’

On a sunny spring day in 2023, I could smell the flowers in the wind as I walked toward my boxing gym. It felt like a fresh awakening. A day prior, I had read a page from a book that my friend had posted on social media. It was a delightful read about authenticity and abundance.

“Well, this is refreshing,” I thought. It was content focused on our inner well-being, and it was written in a way that awakened my childlike self. It was from the book “Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy,” by Sarah Ban Breathnach (pronounced “Bon Brannock”), and I curiously explored her reflections as I thought about my own journey as a woman in our current society and social circles.

Written in 1995, Ban Breathnach’s book is composed of essays—one for each day of the year. The essays are about exploring your life and journey through creative expression, contemplation and soul-guided action. She addresses the common disturbances we have as humans and offers guidance on navigating them through her own life experiences and reflections.

In one powerful part of the book, Ban Breathnach uses a famous fairy tale to explain the power of our mind and how we must believe in ourselves to create the reality we desire.

“Next to knowing what to do with a few loaves and fishes, knowing how to spin straw into gold is probably the most important talent a woman can possess. It can make the difference between living a life of lack and living one of simple abundance. Gratefully, the gift was bestowed on all of us. But, like any other talent, the gift of alchemy must be called forth, treasured, owned, respected and nurtured,” she writes. (August 19—Spinning Straw Into Gold)

She then guides us into the story of the magician Rumpelstiltskin, who makes the straw of gold for the miller’s daughter after the king commands the daughter to transform the straws into gold, otherwise she will lose her life. She is successful multiple times after, and marries the king. The book quotes Jungian analyst and singer-storyteller, Clarissa Pinkola: “stories are embedded with instructions which guide us about the complexities of life.” (August 19—Spinning Straw Into Gold)

Ban Breathnach reminds us that each character in our dreams and fairytales is reflective of the inner aspects of ourselves. Deep in your subconscious, you are the miller’s daughter, the king and Rumpelstiltskin, but most importantly, you are the straw of gold. You can infuse and transform the “straw” of ordinary occurrences into “gold” in the form of gratitude, spirituality and fulfillment.

Essays of life

“The simple abundance path is about transformation. But transformation cannot occur without transition … The process is the reality, and it cannot be rushed,” Ban Breathnach writes. (May 23—Nurturing Your Authentic Flair).

As with all things in life, what remains true is that we are in constant flux. Water changes form as its waves curl over ridges through movement and rhythmic impulse. However, when stagnant, its form takes the calming shape and force of the wind. A seed becomes a flower at its own pace; however, one does not rush the flower to blossom as the conditions would not allow it to “awaken to [its] own radiance,” as Ban Breathnach writes. (March 9—A Radiant Reflection: Projecting Your Authentic Self)

Likewise, transforming into the physician one hopes to be requires patience, trial and error, and persistence that one will overcome the activation energy before kinetic energy takes over and all that we have learned weaves together.

Ban Breathnach also addresses the mundane aspects of our daily lives, such as your bathroom and living space. “The importance of the bathroom is irrefutable … these rooms are secret havens for self-absorption.” (June 6—The Bath: Secret Haven of Self-Absorption) She recommends that readers experiment with a new personal care product, such as “aromatherapy, bath salts, gels, foam, milk, bubble baths and Vita baths,” every night for a week. Readers can save the products they like to use on planned personal spa days, which the author also recommends, and regift to others the ones they don’t care for.

Her essays for each day of the year focus on your spirituality being in union with your lifestyle. In a world where brute force, aggressiveness and physical power are applauded and rewarded, we must be reminded of our holistic nature of being human.

Beyond sharing what you need for your bathroom to create an at-home spa experience, what I believe Ban Breathnach is truly expressing is that we each have our own capacity, creativity and agency to create a space that is nourishing and rejuvenates our soul. Whether it be our bathroom, living room space, meditation area or a corner of our room where our plants live, these can be sacred spaces that inspire awe, reflection and imagination.

Applying the lessons to our own lives

Throughout the essays for April, I couldn’t help but be drawn to Ban Breathnach’s theme of awakening to our own beauty. She quotes Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu: “‘be really whole … and all things will come to you,’” on breaking the cycle of self-loathing and making peace with one’s body weight. Lao Tzu shares that the way to be made whole is to recognize that the body knows when we are hungry. When we feel hungry, we should eat. When we are thirsty, we should drink water, and not restrict caloric intake to fit into the size two jeans we see on the runway. This guidance brings us back into our intuition, our inner knowing we were born with and will carry with us throughout our lives.

This intuition also inspires us to purchase only the things we truly treasure; objects that bring joy, comfort and inspiration. She says, “trust your instincts. If you do, every time you look into the mirror, you’ll be rewarded with a vision of your authentic self.” (April 6—Classic Chic: The Color Story) My heart beats faster every time I read this, as I deeply feel that personal style, clothing and other adornments are expressions of our authentic selves.

I am highly interested in growing into my authenticity. In residency, I have found that the moments when I want my authenticity to shine through are fleeting. Often, it feels safer to be the clinician others want us to be.

My attendings have told me that they truly began to practice the way they wanted only after residency. A mentor of mine continues to nourish my desires to eventually practice more confidently, gently asking if the choices I made for a patient were my own or my attending’s. These conversations have encouraged me expand the boundaries of my comfort zone and feel more assured in my decisions.

Although “Simple Abundance” is a book directed at women, with changing times and culture, I believe it is a book for anyone with a heart for creativity, curiosity and exploration. One can feel more liberated as Ban Breathnach puts into words the essence of our human condition filled with doubt, celebration, urgency and renewal. As physicians and anyone working in the healthcare field, we may face layers of confusion, certainty, euphoria, relief, pride and shame through various presentations, interactions and outcomes. It is important to understand the journey we have chosen through our profession. This is a book that guides us in a dance toward our true north—our true calling.

Ban Breathnach closes with these words that awaken my heart: “Believe. Believe in yourself. Believe in the One who believes in You. All things are possible to she who believes.” When I am in doubt and I think of my ancestors watching over me, I feel this is what they would say. The love they infused into me from when I was young makes me feel less alone.

To close, I will leave her last few words to echo in our minds: “set your course for Authentica. Legend has it that once you reach her shores, you’ll not leave the same woman … you will remember what you have always known. You will see the authentic self is the soul made visible.” (December 31—Pray the Journey Is Long) May you leave your footprints on Authentica, and celebrate those who have made it too. 

Related reading:

The DO Book Club, July 2025: Summer beach reads with a medical twist

The DO Book Club, June 2025: ‘American Sirens: The Incredible Story of the Black Men Who Became America’s First Paramedics’