Ra(ndom)mblings.

 How many times do we find ourselves trying to fit into this mold of something or someone that we think will make us more attractive or more desirable or more popular in the eyes of someone else? How often do we allow comparison to be the thief of the joy and accomplishments and successes we work so hard for? It's the easiest thing to do. You take yourself at your worst and compare it to everyone else at their best. And it doesn't help that on top of that, you deal with a barrage of social media from facebook, instagram and twitter. It's the perfect platform for comparison. Because let's all be honest here--usually people shy away from broadcasting their circumstances if they don't feel good about them. But that doesn't stop you, when you're feeling like your life is less-than documentary worthy, from scrolling and clicking and sorting through pages and pages of content that can make the life you're trying to balance (and build) seem less than enthralling. Suddenly you question what you're doing, criticize why you're doing it, and unhappiness, complacency and negativity corrodes your ambition and skill until there's not much left of you. 

So what's the point of it all? There's this idea that to be something worthwhile, we have to beat out everyone else, make ourselves stand out from the crowd, be different, unique, noteworthy, exciting. And there's nothing wrong with that. Not at all. But all too often the motivation behind that desire isn't to make ourselves the best we can be to live with a positive image of our own life, but to beat out or one up or feel more accomplished than another. The grass is always greener, right? Except for when you're on the other side. All we can really do is work our very hardest to be the very best we can be for the right reasons. The root of all unhappiness isn't going to be fixed by trying to attain some trait or skill or quality or look that someone else has because you think they're better off than you. The root of YOUR unhappiness is only fixed by taking the time to really understand what you want and why you want it, then working your butt off to get it because that's the only thing that can make your circumstances better and make you happier. Basically it all comes down to what makes you a better person, because to be perfectly honest, no one contributes anything to the world if their mindset is downtrodden and shackled by thoughts of comparison, envy and negativity. So understand what you're doing, and why you're doing it, and if you're unhappy, stop. If you want something else, change. Work hard to accomplish the things you really want, and take the time to stop and think and make sure those things are getting you where you want to go, not where you think someone else is going because they seem happier or better or more successful than you.

Because let's be honest, none of us really know anything about anything in the long run. We can plan all we want, but stuff happens. And I for one, am going to be in the thick of what makes me happiest if or when that occurs. At least then you know you're living a life in no one's shadow, and making the most of it. 

"Love is not blind, that is the last thing love is. Love is bound, and the more love is bound the less it is blind"