love what's yours

I went to dinner the other night with friends and we had an interesting conversation. we were talking about facebook and how annoying certain people can be. and how- yes, we admit it- we can be jealous of these people sometimes. "why does she get to go on so many tropical vacations?" or "look at his new car/tv/house..." or "I feel like every day she posts something about how amazing her job is" and we get in the habit of comparing our lives to theirs and it ultimately feels like we are lacking.

but you have to stop and consider a few things. you are only seeing what this person wants you to think their life is like. they have complete discretion on editing things out and adding things in. what they are projecting as their life is only the highlights they choose, not the whole story. you don't know what is going on in the background, or even if what they say is true.

think of it like watching a movie trailer. sometimes the movie looks incredible, and then you realize after you see it that they put all the good stuff in the trailer.

though sometimes, the trailer is spot on. which means you also have to remember we are all individuals with varied capabilities and sensibilities. what is important and meaningful to me might be crumbs to you. we place value differently, measure worth in different coins. even though we both call it blue, the color I see when I look at the sky might not be the same through your eyes.

the point is: the only reliable source of happiness is accepting and enjoying your own life and what is around you. comparing to others can only detract from that. you have to love what's yours. something I've been working to remember and attempting to infuse into my way of thinking.