No Comparison

I wonder sometimes why society has such an obsession with comparing themselves to others. We see someone's story and think our story is supposed to be the same. We are supposed to look a certain way, dress a certain way, act a certain way, or have a certain status. We set our expectations beyond what anyone should have to endure and expect ourselves to meet them. We spend countless hours molding our self into what we think everyone else wants to see. Do you realize the only person watching what you are doing so intently, is you? Deep down, most people don't actually care what you have going on in you life, longer than the couple minutes that you cross their mind. They don't care because they are too busy trying to live up to the same expectations that you are. We are in this vicious cycle of who is more perfect. We live in an age where we can put a filter on our face when it doesn't look like a magazine cover and then post it for the whole world to see like, look how perfect I am. Just a couple days ago, my eight year old son took his shirt off because he was hot. He had a friend over, and I noticed he was sitting trying to hide his stomach and then suck it in when he wasn't covering it. I was shocked to realize that at eight years old he is already believing that he has to be a certain size. This kid is by no means heavy. He is muscular for sure, a bigger kid for sure, but not at all heavy. It was in that moment that I realized just how much pressure this world puts on all of us. We truly believe that in order to be loved, wanted, appreciated, successful, or anything else, that we have to be what everyone else says we have to be. This is the biggest lie we have ever been fed, and it is detrimental to our mental health. We honestly believe that once we lose the weight, once we get the surgery, once we get that bigger house, the nice car, then we will be happy. You'll find that once you do all those things, you aren't going to be any happier than you were when you were sitting in your smaller home in your bigger pants. The only time those things are gong to make you happier is when you decide you are doing them only for yourself. If you need to lose weight because it is affecting your health, mental or physical, do it. If you need a bigger home because you don't have enough bedrooms, work toward it. If you're doing it because the world says you need to, then you've got it all wrong. If you have enough bedrooms for your family, take that extra money you'd spend on the bigger mortgage and do something you've always wanted to do. Learn to be content with your situation. Always strive to better yourself and your situation, but only because it's what's best for you. Go back to school and better your education, because you want to. If you do it for any other reason, it's going to be a burden. You only live once, and if you do it right, you will only need the one chance you're given.

I used to be that person. I used to think I would only measure up if, if, if... but then I realized, the only person who truly needs to be happy is myself, and those that I promised commitments to. You will miss out on so much that life has to offer if you are in constant fear of all the imperfections that the world says you have. We are afraid of the beach because we don't look like Kim Kardashian or Brad Pitt. We are afraid of the job interview because our education wasn't exactly what they were looking for, even though our experience and qualifications are enough. We are afraid of telling our story, because we think they'll only remember our stuttered words. Stop living in this insanity that has been created. Stop comparing yourself to others lies. They did not wake up like that.