Envy

Daily Quote

"Never underestimate the power of jealousy and the power of envy to destroy. Never underestimate that."

-Oliver Stone-

Lesson of the Day

One of the worst feelings to have is envy. It's more than just unpleasant, it poisons what you do have while you pine for what you don't. The thing about envy is that it shifts your focus away from what you do have, to all the things you don't have. It makes you feel like what you have isn't good enough, makes you feel like what you have isn't worth having. One situation I often see is one in which a person sees that others have what he or she wants, whether that be money, a person's time and energy, or even being healthy. This person tends to see themselves as inferior, when they aren't. They feel like what they have isn't valuable, when, in reality, what they have is very valuable. Once you sit and think for awhile, you come to the realization that it all comes down to focus and clarity. Let's start with the latter, it's easier. Clarity is seeing clearly, so what aren't they seeing? Well, envy is a common human emotion, which means a lot of people do it. Which means that, all those people who have what you want, want what someone else has. So, in reality, there are people who are envious of what you have, who feel that what you have is more valuable than what they have. The second part of the clarity portion is that, while each party may feel that what the other person has is better, both are skewed perspectives. Settle it to say that everything you have is valuable, is worth quite a lot, whether it be friends, money, health, talents, skills, etc. What you have is valuable, believe that. Now for the former: focus. We all know what it is to focus. Take a look at an example here. There are two neighbors, and two gardens. The first neighbor's garden is beautiful, well-kept, and flourishing. The second neighbor's garden is overgrown, ugly, and headed to desolation. The first neighbor spends his time tending his garden, while the second only watches the other garden grow and flourish. The moral is to tend what you have, to focus on what you have, and what it can be. That's really the way to fight envy. The more you focus on what you have, and it's potential, the better your garden will become. Pining away at things you don't have does nothing, so take care of your life, tend your garden, see clearly, and focus.

Questions to Ponder

What do you envy? Do you fight your envy, or are you giving in to it? Do you give your own life the attention it needs to flourish and grow? What can you do better? How can you make things better?

Gratitude

I'm thankful today for what I have, all of it. I'm thankful for the opportunity to make my life great, to make things better. I'm thankful for all of you, thank you for reading, and I really hope each of you have a great day!