Are you choosing to compare away your joy?
I saw the Theodore Roosevelt quote below and it really resonated with me. I can definitely get caught in the trap of comparing myself to others. I see the new car of my neighbor and although I like my car I find myself wishing I had a car that wasn’t 30 years old. I see thinner or stronger bodies and compare them to my flabby bits. If I am completely honest I must admit that sometimes I even see the gratitude that other people post and compare it to mine thinking that I should be better at this, more authentic, more poetic. So yes, I see what Roosevelt was saying, this sort of comparison is the thief of joy. But then I remember that I am blessed with the power to choose. I can choose to not compare myself to others. I can see us all as one. I can see us all as people rich in some ways and lacking in others. Or I can choose to compare in the other direction. Instead of comparing myself to my neighbor with the new luxury car I can compare myself to my neighbor who doesn’t have a car or even to my neighbor who can not drive anymore because of her illness. This type of comparison reminds me of even more that I have to be grateful for. So while comparison may be the thief of joy if we choose it to be. It may also be the giver of joy if we choose it to be. I choose gratitude. The gratitude question of the week guides us to compare our current selves with our past selves in order to find gratitude. What are you grateful to have that you didn’t used to have?
[su_quote cite=”Theodore Roosevelt”]Comparison is the thief of joy.[/su_quote]
This Week’s Gratitude Question
[su_button url=”http://www.ourgratitudecollective.com/activity/” background=”#178fb3″]What are you grateful to have that you didn’t used to have?[/su_button]
My Gratitude Experience Last Week
It was interesting that I was grateful for a couple of products that I didn’t buy: a QSC powered speaker and a bass ukulele. While I am drawn to them and very well may choose to buy them in the future, my gratitude showed me that I don’t need to have them in order to appreciate them. That is a beautiful realization and one that will save me a lot of money if I continue to put it into practice.
Forgotten Gratitude
Last week I was also grateful for vivid dreams about frilled lizards and eel-like goldfish … Fun and work with family … Giving my love a yummy treat, cream cheese and guava truffle.
A New eCard
The Gratitude I Shared Last Week
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| Sun | 10/5/2014 | I’m grateful for all of my supporters this morning … Photos of lace, glass, steel and flowy layers of sound in pastel shades on a Sunday morning … Real horchata … A deep resonant bass ukulele … Laundry, knitting, and watching movies. |
| Sat | 10/4/2014 | I’m grateful for way too much fun being a piñata beat-down spectator … The people who all left the lot at a decent hour and without too much litter left behind … Tamales smothered with my red … Being able to talk out my fears and preoccupation so I could get to presence with a clear vision of a successful night. |
| Fri | 10/3/2014 | I’m grateful for a snack in the park and a chance to connect … A clean desk … A comfy bed to hold my aching head. |
| Thu | 10/2/2014 | Today I’m grateful for vegan waffles with bacon and coconut whipped cream … So much so fast with my nephew and having enough energy to keep up … Water, so much water, and more water. |
| Wed | 10/1/2014 | Good things today: QSC infatuation … Yummy donuts and coffee … Being treated like the professional I am in two music stores … Happy mistakes with dinner that led to delicious red chile fries … Realizing I had the perfect (temporary) solution right in front of me the whole time. |
| Tue | 9/30/2014 | I’m grateful for a nice 46 minutes each moment flowing gracefully to the next … A perfect mind-numbing wind down … A chill necessitating a snuggly blanket. |
| Mon | 9/29/2014 | I’m grateful for enough time to deal with my technical problems … Having the perfect ingredients to make a meal I’ve never tried before … Hot coffee in my new mug. |
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My gratitude journey started in May 2011 and continues to this day. Thank you for being a part of it! A daily gratitude practice is simple. Write down three things you are grateful for each day. Download your free GratitudeGuide. My clients focus on gratitude and learn from their successes to make the positive changes they want in their lives. You can to. Call me to set up our first meeting 505.333.9336. Created by Antonia Montoya[/su_note]