Mud and Wool

Can I tell you a secret? Sometimes I struggle with envy. Sometimes I even envy my friends, the people I love and admire the most. These days I don’t have a ton of free time or spare change, and sometimes I feel envious of those who do. But I realized recently that when I struggle with comparison, I can play a little trick on myself instead. Rather than envying others, I imagine what someone else might envy about me:

1. I have four healthy kids.
2. I get to stay at home with my kids.
3. I am healthy.
4. I have an amazingly kind and loving husband.
5. While they may live far away, I have good relationships with my parents and in-laws and get to see them roughly once a year.

After a few reps of this exercise, I realize how very blessed I am, and suddenly I feel embarrassed that I envied someone else’s life. I also start to feel happy for that person, rather than envious.

While all of our situations are different—the obvious blessings that others can see outwardly or the inner struggles that we do our best to hide—we all have something to be grateful for. The more I shift my focus onto what I have rather than what I don’t, the more I am able to applaud my friends rather than envy them.