I am baring a bit of my soul here. Just recently, I have noticed how much I "want" what others have. I admire many homes on my daily drive, then I find myself thinking, "I bet that is a nice house to live in. It's better than mine." Or perhaps, I look at a co-worker, who always looks like she could step into the pages of a magazine...and I want those clothes, that hair, her body, etc...
To be clear I do not lack confidence in myself. I know I have far more than the majority of the world. Contentment is a tough pursuit for me though, just the same. Our world is as shallow as it gets, and I buy into that. Constant comparison between myself and another steals my joy and actually makes me less thankful for what I do indeed have. There is nothing wrong with buying a new outfit or shoes, as long as I remember that those possessions are not ME. My closet doesn't define me. My appearance isn't even actually ME.
If tomorrow, I had to give away all my "stuff", I know that would be just fine. In fact, it may put things into perspective. Contentment is a rarity.... I cannot be the only who struggles.
"Contentment is not synonymous with effortless." - Bennett
Great post Mando! I often feel the same way, as I believe most of us do from time to time. This is not something I wish to teach my children. I preach to them all the time that they need to be thankful for what they have, and how lucky they are. I need to take a dose of my own medicine! Thanks for your candidness and gentle reminder that we all have it pretty good. A wise friend once told me that if we all wrote our problems down on a blank sheet of paper and threw them into the middle of a circle we would all probably want to have our own problems back when realizing how much worse it could be.
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